


Full Circle

by bansheequeen (queenbanshee), xtremeroswellian



Series: Circles [1]
Category: Smallville
Genre: BAMF Chloe Sullivan, BAMF Oliver Queen, Chloe to the rescue, F/M, Fingering, Friendship, Hurt Oliver, Identity Reveal, Misunderstandings, Multiple Orgasms, Oliver to the rescue, Oral Sex, Secret Identity, Trust Issues, Vaginal Sex, mentions of human trafficking, miscommunications
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-13
Updated: 2020-05-13
Packaged: 2021-03-02 22:00:08
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 11
Words: 33,589
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24164005
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/queenbanshee/pseuds/bansheequeen, https://archiveofourown.org/users/xtremeroswellian/pseuds/xtremeroswellian
Summary: Chloe leaves Metropolis in search of a fresh start and to try and find out more about Star City's vigilante, Green Arrow. But it was Oliver Queen she never saw coming.
Relationships: Green Arrow/Chloe Sullivan, Oliver Queen/Chloe Sullivan, past James "Jimmy" Olsen/Chloe Sullivan
Series: Circles [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1743880
Comments: 1
Kudos: 14





	1. Chapter 1

With a deep, would be calming breath, Chloe lifted her foot and kicked the tire of her red bug as hard as she could. It did nothing, really, except for hurt her foot and maybe relieve a tiny bit of frustration. "Twenty goddamn miles more, you couldn't wait twenty more miles before you died." She told the car, glaring down at it. She knew that making the drive from Smallville to Star City in her eight year old car was a bad idea. It ran okay but the previous owners had ranked up quite some mileage in the two years they had it, but she had had no choice.

It wasn't like she could afford a new car and she most definitely could not stand to be in Kansas anymore.

But because of her desperate need to get out as soon as possible, she hadn't exactly planned this as much as she should have. Her cell phone was dead, it had died about an hour ago, there was nothing on the highway as far as she could see, it was getting dark and it was ridiculously hot because she chose to drive to California in the beginning of the summer, which meant if she was stuck there, she would have to sleep in her car, with the AC off and would probably either be mugged or worse during the night or have a heat stroke because she had no water either.

"Great planning, Sullivan." She told herself, sighing and leaning against the traitor red bug of hers. She could potentially call for Clark, but he hadn't paid attention to her in months now, she highly doubted he was listening anyway.

At that moment, the roar of a motorcycle engine broke the relative silence of the coming night. Heading in the same direction as her car was pointed, the bike's single headlight shone like a newly-polished street lamp. It slowed down the closer it got and the driver pulled off to the side of the road, stopping it a few feet behind her bug. He sat there for a brief moment, then killed the engine and kicked the kick-stand into place, removing his helmet.

Chloe stilled, her stomach clenching as her motorcycle stopped close by, her eyes widened but she pushed herself away from the car and stood up straight, hoping this guy was there to help and not to kill her.

He nodded at her, taking note of the wariness on her face. "Need some help?" he asked, not getting off the bike.

She sighed softly, feeling a little better when he didn't actually approach her, "I think my car is dead."

He raised his eyebrows a little, glancing from her to the car. "Have you called for a tow truck?"

She actually smirked at that, but there was no humor to her expression, "I would have, but my phone died about an hour ago too." She took a deep breath, "do you have one I can borrow?"

The man grimaced a little. "No, I didn't bring it with me," he admitted, chewing the inside of his cheek for a moment. "Are you heading to Star City?" He looked past her to the road ahead, raising his eyebrows.

Of course he hadn't. Either that was a line or it was one more thing that would of course go wrong, "yeah." She told him, considering him for a moment. He was definitely a good looking guy and he looked familiar but she couldn't quite place him. Bad guys didn't always look like bad guys and she had sorta kinda dated a few of them to know, but at least she doubted there would be meteor freaks this far outside of Smallville. Well, except for her of course.

He considered her for a moment, then drew in a breath. "I could give you a ride into town to call for a tow, or I could call one for you when I get there myself," he offered.

Chloe considered him for a moment too then shook her head, "if you don't mind giving me a ride." She said. She didn't think he was going to hurt her, but she didn't want to stay there and risk something else happening either.

"I don't mind," he told her with a slight nod. "Have you ever been on a bike before?"

She took a deep breath and shook her head a little, "no." And then she shrugged, she had also never been to California before and she was moving there, the bike was the least of her worries, "let me just grab some things."

"All right." He raised his eyebrows a little, watching as she moved to open the car door.

She leaned into the car and pulled everything important, documents, cash, her dead phone and her small laptop into her oversized purse. She glanced over her shoulder before quickly pulling the taser from her glove compartment into her purse too and leaving it on top of everything else, just in case. She was desperate but not stupid.

"Okay," she said, locking up the car and double checking it before stepping closer to the motorcycle. "Guess I'm ready."

He offered her a small smile, nodding and handing her the helmet he'd removed. "You'll need this."

Chloe frowned a little and looked at him for a moment, "what about you?"

"Don't worry about me," he assured her, holding it out insistently.

She considered him for a moment longer then took the helmet and slid it on, it was too big for her so she had to adjust it a couple of times before she could actually see out of it, "thank you."

"You're welcome," he told her. "Climb on and hold on."

With a deep breath, she adjusted her purse over her shoulder and climbed behind him carefully then looked around, "hold on to what?"

He glanced over his shoulder at her, raising an eyebrow. "Me."

"Oh," Chloe shifted a little on the bike then placed her hands on his side, her heart skipping a beat. At least he _was_ hot.

"I'm Oliver," he offered, practically feeling the tension in her himself.

"Chloe," she told him, cocking her head a little. Oliver... She definitely didn't know anyone named Oliver, but then why did he look so damn familiar? Hopefully it wasn't from the most wanted list.

"Pretty name," he told her, flashing her a smile before facing forward and starting the bike's engine once more. It rumbled to life beneath them.

Pretty smile, she thought to herself, arching her eyebrows and unconsciously tightening her grip on his sides as the bike started moving. 

Oliver kicked the kickstand back into its place and sped off down the highway without another word.

* * *

About ten minutes later, Chloe felt him slowing down and cocked her head, trying to see out of the oversized helmet, she saw a small diner to their right and relaxed a little. That beat him taking her to a deserted beach somewhere and her never being heard from again. 

Oliver parked the motorcycle in front of the diner and shut off the engine, raising his eyebrows a little as he climbed off it and held his hand out to help her do the same.

She took his hand and took a deep breath, climbing out of it slowly, "thanks," she told him once more. 

"You're welcome," he said, setting the helmet down on the bike's seat when she took it off. "Come on. I'll buy you a cup of coffee and call you a tow truck for your car."

Chloe shook her head a little and adjusted her purse over her shoulder, "the least I can do is buy you coffee, I'd feel better if you'd let me buy you dinner too," she said, starting into the diner with him.

A small, faintly amused smile touched his mouth. "Maybe a raincheck on dinner. I already ate."

She nodded a little, looking over at him, "I guess a 'thanks for not murdering me' coffee will do then," she said, smirking a little at him and relaxing a little more as she pushed the door open.

He chuckled involuntarily at that. "As long as it comes with sugar in it," he teased, following her inside the small diner.

Chloe took a deep breath as she looked around inside then approached one of the waitresses, quickly explaining her the situation and when the woman showed her where the phone was, she turned back to Oliver, "I don't suppose you have a number for a tow place?"

Oliver winked at her and headed up to the counter, whispering something to one of the waitresses, who regarded him with wide-eyed surprise, and a moment later handed him a phone book. He moved back over to Chloe's side and opened the book to the yellow pages. "This is the one I'd go with," he told her, pointing to one of the towing services.

She cocked her head and watched him even as he pointed out the number in the yellow pages, wondering what he had said to the girl and why she had been so much nicer to him than to her. Probably because he was a guy and he was hot, but still the way the girl was now whispering to two other waitresses and they were all staring at him made her wonder, "thanks," she said finally, blinking and turning to the phone before dialing the number for the place he had suggested. 

"No problem," he assured her, leaning against the wall beside the payphone and glancing around. The place was practically deserted save for the employees, and a guy in the corner reading an issue of the Star City Register.

Chloe took a deep breath and waited for a moment then started to talk to the guy in the other end of the line, she had never really had to dealt with this before, she always had her dad or at least Clark around to call for help when he car broken and by the price the guy had just told her, she probably _would_ have to call Clark and ask him to come fix her car for her if he could because a mechanic would cost her a fortune.

"Okay, thank you. Yes, at the Star Diner. Thank you." She said again before hanging up and sighing softly. 

"Did they say how long it would be?" he questioned, raising his eyebrows at her.

"Anywhere from half an hour to an hour," she said, "thanks for the ride, but you really don't have to wait."

"I don't mind. Besides, sitting here by yourself won't be very entertaining," he pointed out.

"You've done a lot already," she said sincerely, starting toward one of the booths. 

"Not so much. Besides, I do believe you promised me a cup of 'thanks for not murdering me' coffee." His eyes twinkled with amusement.

Chloe grinned at that and looked down then back at him before taking a seat, "yeah well, not getting murdered so far was kind of the highlight of my day."

He cocked his head, and slid into the seat across from her. "Well, I can see where your car breaking down wouldn't have been a highlight, but this sounds like it's more complicated."

She shrugged a shoulder and smiled at him, "it's been a long drive, I'm moving to Star City and it's just frustrating when the car breaks down twenty miles outside of the destination," she said, she wasn't about to start complaining to the stranger that had rescued her, so she turned her eyes down to look at the menu.

Growing more curious, he leaned his elbows on the table. "Oh. Have you been here before?"

"No, never been," she said, glancing at the waitresses that were still staring at Oliver like they had never seen someone as gorgeous as he was before.

"So what made you choose it?" he asked, genuinely interested as he watched her, seemingly oblivious to the stares.

"Seemed like a nice city," she told him, shrugging a little, "I'm from Kansas so I've always wanted to live somewhere near the beach," she lied because she didn't think telling him she was there to stalk the local vigilante sounded like a good idea, "what about you, are you from here?"

"I was born here," he told her, offering her a smile as he shrugged.

"Oh," she nodded a little and smiled at him, "guess you like it here then?"

Oliver paused at that. "Let's call it a bittersweet romance."

She cocked her head, watching him for a moment, "why is that?"

Before he had a chance to respond, one of the waitresses walked up. "What can I get for you tonight?" Her voice was sugary-sweet and she smiled brightly at Oliver.

"I'll have the chocolate chip pancakes with a side of bacon," Chloe told the girl even though she wasn't looking at her, "coffee and water, please." She said sweetly too with a forced smile at the girl.

Oliver glanced at Chloe, a smirk tugging at his mouth. He glanced up at the waitress, as well. "Just a cup of coffee for me, please."

"Of course. Right away." She batted her eyelashes at him, completely ignoring Chloe and heading away.

"I'm gonna take a wild guess here and assume I'm not actually getting anything I ordered," she told him, arching her eyebrows.

He raised his eyebrows. "I've never been here before," he admitted.

"Really?" She frowned a little, cocking her head and looking at the waitresses again then back at him, "that just got creepier."

"I wouldn't worry too much about it. She's working for tips, and she wrote something down. Hopefully she doesn't have to actually write down the word 'coffee' to remind her what she's supposed to be bringing." He winked at her.

Chloe pursed her lips together, on top of being hot, he was incredibly charming and apparently a flirt, "yeah, I guess we'll see what happens."

"I guess we will," he agreed, holding her gaze.

She smiled a little at him and arched her eyebrows, "so what do you do aside from rescuing random strangers from the side of the road?"

He smiled back and looked down at the table. "I'm a businessman," he told her.

"Oh," she arched her eyebrows, vaguely wondering in the back of her head if he would look good on a suit then shaking her head a little, "I would never have guessed." She wasn't sure why she was having such a hard time _not_ focusing on how the man across from her looked, she had grown up around Clark, she should have gotten over attractive men at this point, but apparently she hadn't so she was just going to blame it on being tired and stressed out.

"What would you have guessed?" he asked, looking up at her once more.

"I don't know, something less... indoors, I guess, with the motorcycle and everything," she told him, shrugging slightly.

Oliver grinned at that. "That bike's one of my vices," he admitted.

"Aren't you too young for a mid-life crisis?" She smirked, leaning back against her seat.

He chuckled. "I may have to keep you around for the sake of my ego."

She shook her head a little and smirked, "I'm sure you have no problem with getting an ego boost," she pointed out, glancing at the waitresses.

"You might be surprised," he responded, not looking away from her.

"I might cry 'liar'," she told him, setting her elbows on the table and leaning forward.

His lips twitched upwards just a little. "I thought that was _wolf_."

"Have to adapt to the situation," she told him, arching her eyebrows.

"How are you at that?" he asked, cocking his head to the side.

"Adapting?" She shrugged a little and nodded, holding his gaze, there was a dare there and she just had to take it, "pretty good."

"Good to know." Oliver smiled at her, tensing ever-so-slightly as sirens suddenly blared in the distance.

Chloe smirked a little at him then arched her eyebrows when the waitress came back with their coffees, but not her water. She sighed softly but thanked her. "Is it?"

He was now staring out the window, suddenly preoccupied. With a deep breath, he turned to look at her. "I'm really sorry, but I'm afraid I just remembered I'm supposed to be somewhere." He really did sound genuinely apologetic.

"Oh," Chloe blinked a little, looking up at him, "of course. I'm sure I can keep myself entertained."

He rose to his feet, offering her a small smile. "Welcome to Star City. Stay safe," he said quietly, holding her gaze for just a few seconds before turning and heading out the door.

Chloe held her breath then looked over her shoulder, watching as he walked out then pausing when she overheard the waitresses, they were not really bothering with actually whispering so she turned to look at them and that was when she heard the word 'Queen' and everything clicked. Her eyes widened as she turned to look over her shoulder at the door again; the man she had been talking to, the stranger who had rescued her, the guy she had been kind of _flirting_ with was Oliver Queen. 

Owner and CEO of Queen Industries.

The most powerful man in the state.

And she hadn't even realized it at all.


	2. Chapter 2

Oliver looked out at the crowd of reporters in front of him as he finished up his speech about the community center he was going to construct in downtown Star City. Since he'd been back from his not-so-planned island vacation, he'd been seeing a lot of kids out on the streets getting into fights, committing crimes like tagging walls with spray paint which he knew was eventually going to erupt into gang wars, and he'd been feeling the urge to do _something_ to try and intervene. In addition to that, the center would create new jobs for people needing work. He just wished the reporters were a little more enthused about the whole thing. He hoped that the more the word got out, the more the kids would at least have something new to look forward to.

"I'll take questions," he told them, drawing in a breath.

"Mr. Queen," Chloe said, standing up quickly as soon as he stopped talking. She had been working at a local paper called Star City Register for almost a month now. She had found herself a fairly decent apartment and she was taking the last few classes that she needed to graduate online. Of course she wouldn't have managed to pay for said classes if she had had to pay for the ridiculously expensive bill for the replacement motor her car had needed if it hadn't been for the man standing on the small stage in front of them right now.

She had gone to pick up her car almost a full week after getting into the city and much to her surprise, it had all been paid for by Oliver Queen. She had been trying to thank him ever since but hadn't had the opportunity. She wondered if he would even recognize her; it had been over six weeks since they'd met.

He glanced around until his gaze settled on the familiar blond in the middle of the crowd, his eyes widening just slightly. "Yes, Ms.--?" He offered her a smile, raising an eyebrow.

"Sullivan, with the Star City Register," she introduced herself. She had never given him a last name after all, "how many kids do you expect to be able to handle in the first phase of the project?"

Chloe Sullivan. He locked the name away in his mind for the time being. "I'm hoping we can have enough staff and enough room for at least fifty to begin with," he told her.

She nodded, lifting her recorder a little higher, "how quickly do you expect to expand?"

"As long as people are making use of it, I expect it to expand pretty quickly. I have a lot of ideas."

She saw someone else standing up a few people down and nodded, "sounds like an amazing project, thank you, Mr. Queen." She told him, smiling and sitting back down.

At her compliment, he smiled, holding her gaze for a moment longer before diverting his attention to the next round of questions.

The other reporters didn't seem incredibly interested in the subject so a few moments later, the questions portion of the press conference was wrapped up. Chloe had seen a lot of people speaking before but Oliver was an amazing speaker, confident, articulate and once again, incredibly charming. Since she was in the first row of the small auditorium, she took her time packing her things away then eventually stood up, ready to follow the rest of the reporters out of the room.

"Ms. Sullivan," Oliver said, stepping off the stage and raising his eyebrows a little, hoping she'd heard him.

Chloe thought she was hearing things, but turned around just the same as she paused and found him looking at her, she smiled then stepped aside so the people behind her could keep going then made her way back down the row, "yes, Mr. Queen?"

"I can't say I expected to see you here," he told her, a smile on his face.

"I can't say the same," she smirked a little, looking down then back at him, "but I'm glad to finally have an opportunity to thank you."

His eyebrows furrowed momentarily. "You thanked me that night. Remember? The 'thanks for not murdering me' coffee." He grinned.

"Well, that doesn't quite cover the 'thanks for covering my thousands of dollars bill' part of the day, though," she said, arching her eyebrows.

Oliver paused, then shrugged a little. "Don't worry about it. Consider it a 'Welcome to Star City' present." Truth be told, he hadn't thought twice about paying off the repair bill for her car.

Chloe smirked again at that and nodded, "If I knew that was the gift to moving here, I would have moved a long time ago."

"Well, if it had been a long time ago, I wouldn't have been here," he pointed out with a smirk of his own.

"Right," she told him, watching him closely, "the whole being assumed dead thing. Is that a must do in the billionaire's club list?"

He raised his eyebrows. "Sorry?"

"Bruce Wayne, Lex Luthor and you have all been assumed dead before," she told him, "I just figured it might be in some kind of guidelines."

Lex being assumed dead was news to him, though he had heard rumors about Bruce being gone before he even got stranded. "I'll let you in on a secret if you promise not to tell anyone." 

Chloe smirked a little and stepped closer, arching her eyebrows, "completely off the record," she promised.

He dropped his voice so it was barely a whisper. "I didn't read the Billionaire's Club handbook." He winked at her.

She grinned, her heart skipping a beat as she looked at him then down and back at him, "smart, never tell a reporter a _real_ secret."

"Not even you?" Oliver grinned back at her.

"Why would you trust my answer in a matter I'm so obviously biased in, Mr. Queen?" She challenged.

"Who said anything about trusting it?" he asked lightly. "Maybe I just want to hear what you have to say."

"I think you should tell me all your secrets and see what I make of them." She said easily, cocking her head and arching her eyebrows as she smiled up at him.

Amusement flickered through him. She was sharp as a tack, that was for certain. "How about an exclusive one-on-one interview about the community center instead?" He was almost surprised the words actually came out of his mouth. He _never_ did one-on-one interviews.

Chloe's eyes widened at that and she stared up at him, before she could fully process it, she nodded, "of course," she said without hesitation and stared up at him, "where should I meet you?"

"Do you know where the Queen Industries headquarters are here?"

"The main one? By Ocean and 47th?" She asked, staring up at him.

Oliver nodded. "Yeah. Why don't you meet me there around two tomorrow? My office is on the top floor."

"I'll be there," she agreed, nodding and looking up at him. "Thank you."

He smiled at her. "Well, you are the only one who expressed actual interest in this side project of mine."

Chloe shrugged a little, "it's a good project for the city, helps keep the kids out of trouble."

"I like your enthusiasm," he told her sincerely. "It's refreshing."

"Thank you," she said sincerely then smiled at him, "it's refreshing to meet a powerful man who seems to actually care about his city."

A faint, mysterious smile touched his mouth. "I take it that hasn't been your experience in the past?"

"I'm from Kansas," she told him, cocking her head, "home of the Luthors, I'm sure that answers your question."

His smile turned into a grimace. "It really does."

Chloe smiled at him and nodded slightly, at least they seemed to be on the same page as far as the Luthors went, but she'd expected as much considering Queen Industries didn't seem to ever partner up with LuthorCorp and that made her feel like Oliver was a good guy, at least as far as how he chose to do business. "Good to know."

"Well, hopefully Star City has a lot of good things in store for you," he told her quietly. "It's not Kansas, that's for sure."

"The beach and warmer weather are already big improvements," she admitted, smiling softly. And she had even managed to make a couple of friends at work, but nothing yet on the real reason why she'd come to the city.

"Glad to hear that." He smiled once more. It was refreshing to have a conversation with someone who didn't seem to be the least bit intimidated by him.

She looked at him for a moment then nodded and smiled once more, "I'll see you tomorrow then, two o'clock," she said, "thank you again."

"You're welcome. I'll see you then." He paused even as he turned to head away. "And Chloe?"

"Yes?" She asked, turning to face him once more and adjusting her purse over her shoulder.

"It was nice to see you again." He smiled at her and headed toward the door.

She held her breath a little and watched him go, cocking her head and once again, impressed at just how charming he was. She let her breath out and smiled before starting out of the room once again. An interview with Oliver Queen and she was just a junior reporter, she guessed that would definitely make her first in line for a promotion.

Maybe having her car die on the way there had been the _best_ thing that could have happened to her and not the worst like she had assumed at first.

* * *

It had been a relatively quiet night, considering the crime spree that had been going on for the last couple of weeks. A group of people--whom he suspected were older teens--had been doing a great deal of breaking and entering into stores whose owners couldn't afford alarm systems for--and stealing things. In the last three nights, he'd just missed catching them by minutes. But after a bit of recon, he was able to determine which stores hadn't yet been hit, _and_ also weren't alarmed. And now he stood on the roof of a general store, in the shadows where he couldn't be seen, waiting. 

He'd been there for nearly two hours, and when he spotted a group of people, he tensed. Except they weren't heading toward the general store. They were heading toward the gas station across the street. And by the hand signals that one of them gave the others, he knew they were about to cause problems. 

Except tonight their luck was running out. If these _were_ the same individuals who'd been causing so much damage, their crime spree was going to come to a very abrupt stop that night.

***

Chloe sighed boredly as she looked at the candy bars. She picked up a Snickers and a bag of M&Ms then started toward the drinks. She really needed to go grocery shopping but she was tired and the grocery store was way out of her way home from work so she'd have candy for dinner. She was pretty sure she still had popcorn at home anyway.

She picked up a bottle of Coke then started back toward the counter to pay. Just as she was setting her things down, however, she heard the door opening and a very loud crowd started making their way in, she paused and looked over her shoulder then she stilled.

A guy who couldn't be older than eighteen or so was aiming his gun at her and smirking.

"Might wanna get down to the floor and keep very quiet, blondie." He said arrogantly. 

"Open the register," one of the others ordered the cashier, pointing his weapon at her. She couldn't have been more than seventeen, and her eyes were wide with fear.

"It's okay," Chloe said quietly to the cashier who was obviously freaked out, "do as they say, it'll be okay," she promised, trying to stop the girl from trying to run and getting herself hurt as she lifted her own hands to show the other kids she wasn't armed, her heart racing.

The girl opened the register with shaky hands, then put her hands in the air as well.

"Start putting it in bags," the guy ordered.

Before she had a chance to respond or obey, the guy made a startled sound, then fell to the floor unconscious with a green arrow sticking out of his shoulder.

Chloe's own eyes widened as she looked down at the arrow, a smirk slowly appearing on her lips, "Green Arrow," she murmured, glancing at one of the other teenagers, "I'd run if I were you."

One of them looked at her with wide eyes and took her advice to heart, running out the door without looking back.

One of the others lifted his gun, looking around suspiciously. "Come on in here, Robin Hood. I'll show you how a _real_ man fights!"

As soon as the words were out of his mouth, his gun went flying through the air and clattered the ground, an arrow lodging in the wall right behind him.

"A real man doesn't fight unless he _has_ to," a distorted voice informed him.

Chloe wasted no time in rushing over to the gun the boy had dropped and picking it up to secure it even as the door bell sounded and one more teenager ran out, leaving two of them still standing and armed.

"Back up!" one of them ordered, pointing the gun at his chest as he stepped through the doorway. With another arrow, this one with an electrical charge, the kid fell down, shaking. 

"Ask yourself which friends' decision you want to follow. The door or the floor," Green Arrow stated.

The last kid stared at him for a full moment then took off.

"Call 911," Chloe told the cashier, who had ducked behind the counter, "you're fine now." She added, turning and looking over at Green Arrow. She'd been looking for him every night since she'd moved, it just figured she'd run into him when she least expected.

"They're already on their way," he told them, and sirens suddenly blared in the distance. He stared at Chloe for a moment. "You should be safe now." He headed for the door.

Chloe glanced at the girl once more then rushed after him, "wait!" She called, her eyes wide, she couldn't let him leave.

He turned to look at her once he was outside in the safety of the dark. "Are you all right?"

"Yeah," she breathed in relief when he stopped, her eyes bright as she watched him closely, "I've been looking for you."

A faint smirk tugged at his mouth. "Have you?" He cocked his head to the side. "Why's that?"

She licked her lips and nodded slightly, "I want to help you," she offered, stepping forward.

He paused. "What do you mean?"

Chloe took a deep breath and smiled, "you've been working alone, right? And Star City is a big city," or bigger than Smallville anyway, "I can help you cover it better."

"You're a vigilante?"

She grinned and shook her head a little then shrugged, "more like... a sidekick, I guess." 

The corner of his mouth tugged upwards in a smirk. "By far the prettiest I've seen," he told her. "I'll think about it." And without waiting for her to respond, he fired an anchor line to the roof and was propelled upwards, vanishing from sight.

"Wait!" She called, looking up, "that's it?"

When he didn't reply, Chloe signed and looked back down, her neck was starting to hurt after all. She pulled her keys from her purse and started back to her car, just in time to see the cops driving up. She had to get home and prepare for the interview with Oliver Queen the following day, and then she had to figure out a way to make herself available for Green Arrow to track her down once he had time to 'think about it'.

Superheroes and their elusiveness. Maybe one day she'd learn to deal with it, but for now she just found it terribly frustrating.


	3. Chapter 3

It was a couple of minutes before two when Chloe made her way up to the top floor of the Queen Industries building for her interview with Oliver Queen himself. Her editor had been so incredibly impressed that she had managed one, he went on and on about how Oliver never did one-on-one interviews and that he only started doing press conferences after he got back from the island.

While Chloe was excited about this and what it would do for her career, she could not stop thinking about Green Arrow. In fact, she had spent most of the night thinking about him and trying to figure out who he was and how to find him again. She had ended up getting all of three hours of sleep.

That didn't really matter though, she drank enough coffee to be alert and after this, her editor had told her she could go home instead of back to the office so she could transcribe and edit the interview.

And then she could have an early night.

Or nap before going to the rooftop to try and get the vigilante's attention. Whichever.

But first things first. She smiled at Oliver's assistant and was more than a little surprised to see she wasn't a hot, young girl, but an older woman, probably in her sixties. She listened as the woman called into his office then thanked her before making her way toward it, pausing just to knock on the door before opening it.

"Come on in," he called, glancing up briefly from his computer and then back to the screen, saving the file he was reading and shutting it down. He rose to his feet, greeting her with a warm smile. "Would you like some water or coffee?" he offered.

"Coffee would be great," she told him, smiling back at him, "thank you." She said as she closed the door behind herself.

"No problem." He poured her a cup, raising his eyebrows. "Sugar or cream?"

"Both?" She told him, smiling and shifting a little on her heels as she watched him, surprised he was the one pouring the coffee and not his assistant.

"Absolutely." He poured a packet of each in there and stirred it, raising his eyebrows. "Is one of each enough?"

"Yes," she told him, "thank you." She said again, looking at him for a moment then looking around the office.

"You're welcome." He moved over to her and handed her the coffee, then motioned to the sofa. "Please, make yourself comfortable."

Chloe glanced at the couch, surprised he was offering it rather than the chair across from his by the desk but she took the seat without a word, "it's a nice office," she said quietly, much nicer than any of the offices the Luthors have.

"Thank you. I tried to make it comfortable considering how much time I spend here," he admitted with a small smile. He sat down at the other end of the couch, not wanting to invade her personal space.

"Understandable," she smiled, setting the coffee on the coffee table in front of her then reaching for her purse, "I don't want to take too much time of your busy schedule, thank you for offering the interview."

"You're welcome," he said sincerely, watching her.

Chloe pulled out a notepad and her voice recorder, making sure everything was as it should be then looking at him, "should we get started?"

Oliver simply nodded.

He answered question after question with ease, like someone who had absolutely nothing to hide, especially about the project. He seemed passionate, like he truly believed both in the cause and in what he was offering as a fix. They briefly discussed how it could lower violence rates in the city, which as Chloe had experienced just the previous night were very much real. He actually gave her a satisfying answer to each and every one of her questions and none of his answers had felt like PR bullshit.

She reviewed her notes once more and took a deep breath, nodding at him, "I think that was all I had for you today, Mr. Queen." She concluded, looking at him once more, feeling oddly comfortable.

A tiny smile touched his mouth. "You can call me Oliver."

"Thank you, Oliver," she said, looking at him for a moment then cocking her head, "I do have an off the record question."

He raised his eyebrows a little, but nodded anyway. "All right."

"My editor told me you've never given a one-on-one interview before, that you didn't even do press conferences at all before you went missing." She said, searching his eyes before asking, "what made you offer me one?"

Oliver paused at that, considering her question and choosing his words carefully. "A lot of reporters around here made their minds up about me and what kind of person I am a long time ago. And while it might have been a deserved assumption before I got stranded...I'm not that guy anymore. I guess I was hoping at least one journalist in this city might take me seriously."

She considered that for a moment then nodded a little, "I hope I can help change your image with the press and with our readers," she said sincerely, eyes still on him.

He smiled faintly, holding his hand out toward her. "I appreciate that."

Chloe smiled back at him and took his hand, shaking it gently, "I appreciate you taking your time for this and I'll be happy to do my best to publish anything else you might be interested in sharing."

He shook her hand, his smile brightening a little. "All right. Sounds like we've got some teamwork going then."

She brightened too at that and nodded, "sounds like something we both could benefit from."

"Count me in then."

* * *

Oliver enjoyed working out. He especially enjoyed jogging, and even more so when it was on the beach. He'd been running along the edge of the water, earbuds in his ears, for nearly an hour when he spotted a vaguely familiar figure in the distance. A smile touched his mouth. It had been a couple of days since her front page article with the Register had come out. To say he was impressed by her writing was an understatement. He'd actually saved a copy of the article. It was the first _real_ news article about him that had come out since he'd been back that _didn't_ emphasize his island adventures.

Chloe was halfway through replying to a text from her cousin when she felt eyes on her and paused, lifting her head and arching her eyebrows as she looked in that direction, her eyes widening behind her sunglasses when she saw a very shirtless, covered in sweat Oliver Queen smiling at her and making his way in her direction. She shifted and stood up from where she'd been sitting on top of her flip-flops and patted the sand from her dress, "hey," she greeted and although she felt awkward, she found herself returning the smile without even forcing it. That was bad.

"Hey," he said back, grinning at her.

And now she was grinning too, but how could she not? "Isn't it a little too hot for this?"

"Well, if I waited for it to cool down, I'd be waiting a long time." He tugged the earbuds out of his ears.

"I guess that's true," she told him, arching her eyebrows and looking up at him, "do you run often?"

"I try for at least five times a week. I don't always hit the beach for it though," he admitted.

Her eyes widened a little behind her sunglasses, "five times a week?"

Oliver chuckled softly at her surprise. "Running is a great stress reliever."

"To you, maybe," she told him, shrugging, "for some of us it's writing."

"Touche," he said with a nod. "And you're pretty damn talented at it."

She grinned once more and looked down, shrugging a little, "thank you," she said sincerely then looked up at him again, "I guess we all have a talent."

"Some people were lucky enough to be born with more than one." He gazed at her.

"Some people are," she agreed, looking back at him and cocking her head a little. 

Oliver smiled. "So what do you think of the beach?" he asked curiously. "Better than the beaches in Kansas?"

Chloe grinned a little, "I don't know, I mean we have so many amazing ones..." she teased. 

He chuckled. "I'll have to check them out sometime when I'm in Kansas."

"I'm sure you will find them superior," she grinned a little, "I definitely won't miss all the tornadoes we usually get this time of the year."

"And instead, you'll get to experience some minor earthquakes from time to time." Amusement danced in his eyes.

She wrinkled her nose and shook her head a little, "yeah, we'll see about the minor part."

"Well, we're not on a major fault line here, fortunately. And most of the newer buildings are earthquake-proof," he assured her.

Pursing her lips together, she nodded slightly, "I guess we'll see how I deal with it," she told him, "how are things with the community center going?"

"Not as quickly as I'd like, but I suppose big projects take time to come to fruition, you know?" He drew in a breath, glancing around and then back at her. "Are you here with friends?"

"They do," she sighed softly, she still hadn't been able to track down Green Arrow again, it had been _days_ since she told him she wanted to help him and she couldn't help but wonder if she had screwed things up. "Oh, no, I'm here alone," she answered when she realized he had asked another question.

He bit back a grin. "Well, I was thinking of taking a quick swim and maybe getting some lunch. Any chance you want to join me?"

"For the swimming part or the lunch part because one sounds a lot more interesting than the other..." she smiled.

"You're welcome to come to both, or whichever one sounds more interesting." He winked at her.

"I'm not wearing a bathing suit," she admitted, looking down at her dress, "so I think I'll skip the swimming part."

Oliver's gaze slid down her form, as well, then back up to her face. "Right." He offered her a sheepish smile. "All right, well I'll be back shortly. Can I leave my iPod here?"

"Yeah," she told him, her cheeks feeling warm from the way he looked at her but she ignored it as she held out her hand for his iPod, "I'll hold it for you."

"You can even listen to it if you want to," he offered, handing it to her, their fingers brushing together.

"You know you just gave me permission to go through your playlists and judge your taste in music, right?" She said, holding her breath a little as she took the device from him.

He laughed softly. "Well, hopefully it'll pass your approval," he teased, winking again, then turning and heading toward the water.

Chloe cocked her head a little and watched him as he ran out to the beach, she kept on watching him for a long moment then took a deep breath and sat back down. She had no idea what she was doing or why she'd agreed to lunch, but she would make her best out of it and ask him about the Green Arrow, focus on work instead of what having lunch with the local billionaire meant.

* * *

They made their way to one of the beach side restaurants after Oliver had used one of the beach showers and changed into a dry t-shirt. It was a nice place, one she hadn't been to before, but it seemed pretty laid back, which considering who she was having lunch with, seemed a little weird that he'd even come here, but knowing what she did about him, it shouldn't surprise her.

They placed their orders and Chloe looked around for a moment, the place was pretty much on the beach and the deck they were sitting at had an amazing view of the ocean, "this must be a good place to watch the sunset from," she commented.

"It is," he agreed with a slight nod, looking across the table at her.

"Sorry," she smiled, turning to look back at him, "my best friend is obsessed with sunsets, he rubbed off on me over the years, apparently."

Oliver smiled at that. "They're nice to watch."

"Yeah, something calming about them," she agreed, sipping on her water then leaning back against the chair, "do you come here often?"

"No. I haven't been here in awhile," he admitted, picking up his own water glass, but not taking a drink.

"Oh," she nodded a little, sipping on her water once more, "it's not far from my apartment, if the food is good I might come more times," she didn't know why she was still talking, but he was kind of staring at her so she felt the need to make conversation.

He smiled, taking a drink of his water. "Well, what kind of food do you like? Maybe I could recommend some places."

"Italian is one of my favorites," she told him, "I've been to a nice italian place that my co-worker recommended, it's a couple of blocks from the Register... I forgot the name now."

"Pastabilities?" he offered, raising his eyebrows. "That's one of my favorites."

"Oh. No, I haven't been to that one yet, but I'll definitely try it," she smiled.

He smiled back. "How are you liking the city so far?"

"It's really nice," she admitted, smiling back at him, "it's relaxed but still feels like a big city, it's a nice combination."

Oliver nodded a little. "I may be a bit partial to it."

"Yeah, well, I wouldn't expect anything else," she smirked then shifted on her chair, "how do you feel about the other local legend?" She asked as casually as she could.

He cocked his head to the side. "The other local legend?"

"Green Arrow?" She told him, cocking her head and sipping on her water once more.

"Oh." He smiled very faintly and nodded. "I don't really have a feeling one way or another."

"Oh, c'mon," she smirked, "everyone in the city has a very strong opinion about him."

He shrugged a little. "I'm not sure I believe the guy exists."

"I can tell you he does," she said quietly, arching her eyebrows.

Oliver paused at that, gazing at her intently and leaning forward. "You've seen him?"

"A good reporter never reveals her sources," she said, leaning forward too and arching her eyebrows as she smirked.

A smirk tugged at his lips, as well. "I see."

"I guess I'm just more interested in hearing the locals' opinions about this before forming my own," she told him, of course she already had an opinion about Green Arrow. He was equal parts a good guy and a jerk.

"Hm." He nodded a little and took a drink of his water, leaning back in his chair once more. "Well, like I said. I've only heard rumors, so." He shrugged.

Chloe nodded a little, looking up at him from across the table, "but from what you've heard, do you think he's out there to help people or do you think he's just a jerk who thinks he's above the law?"

He set his glass down, considering her question. "I'm not sure the two have to be mutually exclusive."

"Good point," she agreed, smiling when the waitress brought their drinks and picking up her soda.

He smiled a little, watching her. "So are you thinking about doing some Green Arrow related articles?"

"I want to," she told him, "but I refuse to publish the same things that have been published already, if I do one, I want an exclusive. No rumors, facts."

Oliver raised his eyebrows. "You mean an interview."

"That would be ideal, yes," she smirked, "but I know how unlikely that is, especially considering I already got an interview from the other most elusive man in the city."

"You never know. Occasionally lightning strikes in the same place twice," he told her, amusement in his eyes.

"I'm sure you will hear about it if it does," she told him, smiling and shifting on her chair.

"So how else would you go about getting facts on an elusive guy like Green Arrow?" he asked curiously. "Besides an interview."

"Start by talking with people he's helped," she told him, shrugging a little, "get a better sense of who he is."

He relaxed a little at that, nodding. "That makes sense."

She smiled at him and nodded a little, "thanks," she said, then looked at him and leaned back against her chair once more. And then she had to track him down and get a straight answer from him.

"Do me a favor?"

"Yeah?" She asked, arching her eyebrows.

"Just be careful. I don't want to see anything bad happen to my favorite reporter."

Chloe paused at that and smiled a little, looking down then back at him, "I always am."

"Good," he said quietly, offering her a soft smile.

She looked at him for a moment then shook her head a little, looking down, she couldn't help but wonder when she had become his 'favorite reporter', but she had to be very careful about it.


	4. Chapter 4

It hadn't taken much work to track down the address of her apartment. A simple call from a payphone to the operator had done the trick since she had only recently moved to town and wasn't in the phone book yet.

Part of him felt guilty for what he was about to do, but he'd be doing her a favor in the long run.

He landed soundlessly on her balcony shortly after Midnight, and waited.

Chloe took a deep breath and cocked her head a little as she read something on her laptop and reached for the popcorn bowl, picking up a handful and bringing it to her mouth.

He reached out and knocked on the glass door, then leaned back against the railing.

She gasped and stilled, her eyes widening a little as she looked over at the door, wishing she had more than the laptop light to help her see who it was. She set the laptop aside and got up slowly, her heart beating fast as she made her way to the balcony. She was _hoping_ it was Green Arrow, but she couldn't see anything and if it wasn't him, she was pretty screwed either way so she reached for the glass door and opened it.

"Do you always open your balcony door to strange men?" he questioned, with a hint of a smirk on his mouth.

Letting out a deep breath, she relaxed a little, "just for ones I've been expecting for over a week."

He cocked his head to the side. "What made you sure I'd show?"

"Oh I wasn't sure," she told him, "but your kind usually shows up when one least expects," she smirked, glad she was actually wearing a nightgown, even if it was a short, cotton one, and not her usual underwear and tank top.

"My kind?" He raised his eyebrows, pausing for a moment.

"Superheroes," she clarified, looking up at him as she actually stepped out on the balcony.

He watched her in the moonlight. "You mean like the Red Blue Blur?"

"You can actually do your own research, surprising." She smirked.

He smirked back at her. "I'm guessing your previous hero wasn't very good at it?"

"Not by a long shot," she told him, "which was where I would come in, but I suppose if you're already good at it, you don't need me after all."

"Don't count yourself out yet. I never said I _enjoyed_ it." He smirked. What the hell was he saying? He'd come to tell her she should keep her distance from him, not encourage her to try and play sidekick.

Chloe cocked her head slightly, "I see," she took another step forward, her face bright and she could feel butterflies in her stomach. Based on everything she'd read about this guy, she really liked his style and she wanted nothing more than to help him expand, be able to work his cases faster, take care of bigger problems than just the teenagers robbing local stores. Because she felt like he had potential.

"How about a trial run, then? Because although I made the offer, I still want to make sure we _can_ work together," she told him.

"What are your terms?" he asked, folding his arms over his chest.

"No withholding information," she said, arching her eyebrows, "you tell me everything you know and I tell you everything I know about the case."

"That's it? The whole truth and nothing but the truth?"

"On my part," she said, arching her eyebrows.

"Meaning?" He frowned a little.

"What are your terms?" She asked.

Oh. Right. Nodding a little, he considered for a moment. "You deal with intel only. Nothing that puts you in the direct line of fire."

She arched her eyebrows and cocked her head, staring up at him. "Alright, deal." She said, holding out her hand toward him.

He reached out and shook her hand firmly.

Chloe smirked and held her breath, looking up at him, "is there something you want me to look into?"

He held onto her hand longer than necessary, then reached into his vest and removed a tiny earbud, holding it out to her. "If you find something you think I need to look into, you can get a hold of me on that."

She took it from him and arched her eyebrows, looking down at it. It _was_ tiny. "Okay, and I assume it goes two ways?" She asked, looking back at him.

He nodded slightly. "It does."

"So you don't have any particular cases you're looking into right now?" She asked.

"Nothing conspiracy-like. Just the usual late night muggings and robberies." He cocked his head to watch her.

"Well..." she grinned a little, "I might have something bigger."

A smirk tugged at his mouth. "Somehow I'm not surprised."

"Because you know me so well?" She asked, watching him closely, or what she could see of him anyway.

"I did my homework," he reminded her.

"Apparently," she agreed, eying him for a moment then turning around and starting back into her apartment, "I have some research," she said, expecting him to come with her.

He remained exactly where he was, waiting to see how long it would take her to notice he _hadn't_ followed her inside.

Chloe paused after a moment and frowned, turning to face him and arching her eyebrows, "what, do I have to formally invite you in like a vampire?"

An amused smirk touched his mouth. "That's cute. It's a little too light in there for me."

"Right," she said, rolling her eyes and picking up a stack of cut outs from her desk in the corner of the living room before starting toward the balcony once more, "I think these are all connected and I think it's all coming from a drug ring, it will take some work to narrow it down and some field research, but I'm pretty sure these people have been supplying high school kids with harder drugs, all kinds of them." She told him.

She had been studying several isolated occurrences in the West side of the city and she didn't have anything concrete connecting the robberies, murders and other violent crimes, but something _felt_ similar and she'd learned never to ignore her instincts when it came to stories.

He took them from her, flipping through the stack, his mouth setting in a grim line. "I assume you have copies for yourself already?"

"I do," she told him, arching her eyebrows, "and I went to the docks a couple of days ago, I think they are around warehouse 47. I think they have some boats that come and go with supplies."

He looked up at her, cocking his head to the side. "I'll check it out."

"Thought you might want to," she told him, "I'm getting as much information as I can but no one seems to have connected the dots."

"Except for you." He leaned back against the railing.

"I could be wrong," she pointed out, smirking a little.

"Somehow I doubt it," he informed her.

"You make it sound like you know so much about me," she told him, stepping forward once more, "we're not exactly on even grounds here."

"It's safer that way," he pointed out, watching her warily. "My being here at all makes you a target."

Chloe rolled her eyes at that and shook her head, "I know the dangers, all of them. If I was scared, I wouldn't have contacted you in the first place. I can deal with it."

"But you're discounting the biggest detail of all."

"Which is?" She asked, eyes narrowing.

"I'm not the Red-Blue Blur. I don't have superpowers. If you're in trouble because of me, I may not be able to get to you in time to help you."

"You're severely overestimating him and our relationship." She said simply. "You may have information on me, but you don't _know_ me."

"I wasn't saying I did," he told her honestly.

"I'm telling you I can handle it," she told him, her voice firmer than before, "that's all you need to know."

He studied her for a moment, pursing his lips together. "As long as you're careful," he agreed with a nod.

"I always am," she said, glancing down at the papers in his hands, "keep me updated."

"Likewise. Goodnight."

"Goodnight," she told him, keeping her eyes on him, she wanted to watch him leave, get a better idea of how he worked.

He flashed her a smile and turned away, fired an anchor line at the roof across the street and was propelled away.

She held her breath and stepped forward, her eyes widening a little when she saw him land on the roof across from them. He had confirmed the fact that he didn't have any powers, something she had already been suspicious of, but he clearly had some amazing skills.

And the fact that he was _just_ human made her respect him a lot more.

* * *

It had been a couple of days since Chloe had had her second meeting with Green Arrow and while she wasn't working, she was trying to dig up more information for him on the drug ring she assumed existed. Which was why it was just past five and she had left the Register, but instead of going home, she situated herself into one of the coffee shops not far from the docks.

She found a table outside, opened her laptop and started observing behind her sunglasses. It was hot out so she had a huge glass of iced coffee to help her keep cool. She wanted to check if she saw anyone suspicious coming and going, but just as he laptop finished powering up, her phone began to ring.

Chloe picked it up and rolled her eyes when she saw her ex's name flashing up on the screen. She had avoided three calls from him already and since he obviously wasn't giving up, she figured she should pick it up. "Jimmy." She greeted.

"Where _are_ you?"

She frowned and arched her eyebrows, "excuse me?" She asked, setting her coffee on the table and sitting up.

"You just picked up and left town without so much as a goodbye? What the hell, Chloe?"

Chloe blinked a couple of times, considering how to answer him for a moment, "we're not together anymore, Jimmy. Last time I saw you, I got the impression you didn't even want to talk to me anymore, so yes, I did." And it took him over two months to realize she had left, apparently.

"I was pissed off, Chloe. That didn't mean I wanted you to vanish off the planet," he snapped.

"It's been, what, ten weeks since we talked?" She asked, keeping her voice even even as her jaw clenched, "what did you expect? For me to just sit around and wait?"

"So your solution is to leave _town_?"

"My solution is to move on," she told him, "how I achieve that is for me to figure out."

"Well, I think you're being really irrational," he informed her.

"And I think for the first time in a really long time, I'm doing something that is actually _good_ for me," she told him, "and you're not the only reason why I chose to leave."

He paused at that, as if that idea hadn't dawned on him. "I'm not?"

Chloe rolled her eyes and shook her head, "no. You're not." She said firmly.

"Well, why else?"

"That's none of your business, Jimmy." She told him sharply.

A couple of people turned around to look at her.

"Well, gee, sorry, Chloe. I happened to have thought we had something special together."

She took a deep breath and lowered her head when she felt eyes on her, "I've moved on. And I don't know why you felt like calling me now, but you didn't even realize I was out of town in how long? I'm sure you've moved on too."

Oliver paused at the door, eyes on her as she spoke on the phone. From her posture, he could tell she was upset, even if he couldn't hear what she was saying. He chewed the inside of his cheek for a moment, then moved slowly toward the table.

"I needed a break, but you _left_ , Chloe!" He told her.

"You're the one who broke up with me, Jimmy." She reminded him.

Oliver raised his eyebrows a little, looking down at her wordlessly.

She felt someone standing next to her and looked up, her eyes widening a little when she saw Oliver standing there, "I have to go," she told Jimmy, hanging up without waiting for a response.

"Sorry to interrupt. You seemed upset," he said uncertainly.

Chloe took a deep breath and shook her head a little, "I'm okay," she told him instantly, "it was just... my ex." She wasn't sure how much he had heard of the conversation so she didn't want to lie.

"Sounds like he was giving you a hard time."

"Apparently he finally realized I left town," she told him, smirking but glad she had her sunglasses on because she knew it wasn't reaching her eyes.

He paused at that. "Well, he's an idiot if you ask me. Which...I realize you didn't, but I felt the need to say anyway."

She paused too and smiled softly, looking down then looking back at him, "thank you," she told him, "it's... not a big deal, really," she lied. She knew things hadn't worked out between her and Jimmy _any_ of the times they had tried for a reason and they were never going to, she just couldn't help but wonder who she'd ever work with, if anyone.

Oliver pursed his lips, gazing at her for a moment. "Well, I should let you get back to your coffee," he said, though he didn't move.

Chloe was about to agree with that, and then he made no move to leave, so she frowned a little, "do you want to sit down?" She offered.

A faint smile tugged at his mouth. "Only if I'm not bothering you," he said sincerely.

"You're not," she said sincerely; she liked hanging out with him, despite his whole billionaire status, he was oddly comfortable to be around. "What are you doing down here?" It wasn't the safest area in the city and she knew it.

He sat down at the table across from her and shrugged a little. "Just taking a walk," he told her. "I took the afternoon off."

"Oh," she nodded a little, closing the laptop and pushing it aside, "sounds nice."

"What about you?" he asked curiously, nodding toward her computer. "On the trail of another story?"

"Yeah, trying to move further into one," she admitted, smiling a little.

He couldn't help but smile back at her. "I'm sure you'll do great."

"Thanks," she said again, pausing when her phone started to ring again, rolling her eyes, she picked it up and saw Jimmy's name on the screen so she ended the call and set the phone back on the table, "sorry. He decided to be persistent," she told him.

Oliver frowned a little and shook his head. "It's all right. Was it a bad breakup?"

"I don't think there are good breakups," she told him, "it wasn't the most mature situation, but neither was our relationship, I guess."

"I see," he murmured, nodding a little.

"I don't miss him." She said bluntly but sincerely, "so I guess that's a good thing." She wasn't done with her sentence and her phone began ringing again.

Oliver raised his eyebrows and looked from her to the phone. "May I?" he asked, nodding at it.

Chloe arched her eyebrows and looked at him for a moment, "...sure," she said, mostly out of curiosity.

He winked at her, then reached out and picked up her phone. He pressed it to his ear after turning it on. "Hello?"

"Chloe?" Jimmy frowned in confusion.

A small smirk touched his mouth. "No, this is Oliver Queen. Listen. Chloe's not interested in talking to you right now, so why don't you stop calling and interrupting our coffee date?"

Chloe's eyes widened at that and she watched him closely.

"Oliver... Queen?" Jimmy gasped, "there is _no_ way you're on a date with _Chloe_."

"And why is that?" His eyes narrowed a little. "She's a beautiful, intelligent woman that I enjoy spending time with. Although I'm definitely starting to understand why the two of you broke up."

Chloe paused and looked down at the table, sighing softly.

"Why we broke up is none of your business, she knows I just needed a break, let me talk to her," he demanded.

"Sorry, Kid. She moved on. Sorry for your loss, though." He hung up the phone and set it down on the table once more.

Chloe lifted her head and looked at him, picking up her phone and turning it off, "thanks," she told Oliver, her voice quiet as she turned to throw her phone in her purse.

"Sorry. I was trying to help." He looked down at his hands.

"You did," she told him, taking a deep breath, "hopefully he won't be calling anymore." But she had been able to hear what Jimmy was saying and apparently he thought less of her than she initially assumed and although she didn't want to admit it, that stung more than a little.

"Well, it really _is_ his loss, Chloe." He looked up at her, gazing at her intently. "A woman like you should never put up with a guy who doesn't appreciate you."

She tried for a smile and nodded, "thank you, Oliver," she said again then took a deep breath and reached for her laptop bag, sliding the computer into it, "I should get going, still need to go by the grocery store before getting home," she lied.

"Oh. Right, okay." He was quiet for a few seconds. "Well, it was good to see you."

"Good to see you too," she told him, pushing her chair back then standing up, "and thanks again."

Oliver rose to his feet, gazing at her. "Sure thing."

Chloe pulled her bag over her shoulder then picked up her purse and coffee, looking up at him once more, her stomach knotting and she didn't even know why, but she forced a smile on her lips and nodded at him, "I'll see you around." She said, more than ready to walk away from him.

"I'll see you," he said quietly, moving aside to let her past, even as he chewed the inside of his cheek.

Ducking her head and made her way around him, walking quickly toward her car, willing herself to keep it together.

She hated that Jimmy could still get to her like that and she hated that she had nearly lost it in front of Oliver Queen of all people.


	5. Chapter 5

Chloe had been asleep in an awkward position on the couch, the TV was on, her laptop was over her stomach and her head was edged between the arm of the couch and the back of it. She would probably have stayed there all night if it hadn't been for a loud noise waking her up.

She sat up quickly, barely catching her laptop before it crashed to the floor. She set it over the side table and stood up, eyes wide as she looked around the empty apartment.

He slid down the railing of her balcony til he was on the ground, shutting his eyes as he panted for breath. His arm throbbed painfully, blood flowing down it.

When she heard another noise, she turned to look at the balcony again, her eyes widening even more when she saw the figure on the floor. "Green Arrow," she gasped, not hesitating before pushing the door open.

"Oh, good. Wasn't sure you'd be here," he tried to joke.

"What happened?" she asked, kneeling down next to him and holding her breath.

"Guy had a gun." He swallowed hard.

"You're hurt," she murmured, looking down at his arm, her heart skipping a beat when she realized it was covered in blood.

"It's not as bad as it looks." Minus the part where it hurt like hell, anyway.

Chloe hesitated then lifted a hand to his arm, "looks like the bullet is still here," she told him, her stomach clenching, "you need to come inside."

He wasn't exactly in a position to argue. "Can you help me?"

"I hope so," she told him, holding her breath and shifting closer, "wrap your good arm around my neck."

Oliver did as she instructed, winding his arm around her neck and forcing himself to his feet.

"I won't... look at you, but I'll need to turn the bathroom light on so I can look at your arm," she told him, pulling him up slowly.

"All right." He leaned against her, glad at least that his right arm hadn't been injured, and that he could still walk, even if he was feeling light-headed.

Chloe wrapped her arm around him and took a deep breath as she started inside the apartment with him, "is it just your arm?"

"Yeah." He exhaled heavily, grimacing. "I'm gonna get blood everywhere."

"As long as you don't call the cops and say I'm the one who did this to you, I think we'll be okay," she told him, trying to tease him to make sure both of them could relax.

A short chuckle escaped him. "No worries there."

"Didn't think so," she told him, turning on the light once they got to the bathroom and leading him to the toilet.

He sat down on the closed toilet seat, keeping his head low. "Sorry to just drop in like this."

"I wasn't doing anything," she told him, they had only spoken a couple of times since he gave her the earpiece and they made some progress with the drug ring, but she hadn't seen him since.

"Lucky for me," he mumbled, chewing the inside of his cheek as he watched her from beneath his dark glasses.

Chloe nodded and reached for a towel, wrapping it around his arm and cleaning it gently, "what happened?"

He looked down, guilt sweeping over him. "She almost died. I was almost too late."

Her eyes widened at that and she looked at him automatically then lowered her head, "who?"

"A woman I was trying to help. She was in a domestic dispute with her husband." He shut his eyes. "He was beating her."

"You tried to stop him but he had a gun?" She whispered, looking back at the hole on his arm as she pulled the towel back.

"I didn't know. I didn't see it until it was too late." He swallowed hard again.

"Is everyone okay?" She asked, taking a deep breath and reaching for her first aid kit under the sink.

Oliver didn't look up. "She's at the hospital. He's on his way to jail." His jaw tightened a little.

Chloe took a deep breath and nodded, picking up the tweezers from the kit then moving to his side again, "I'll try to get the bullet out first."

He braced himself as best he could, biting down hard on his tongue before she even touched him with the tweezers.

She felt when he tensed up and shook her head, "that will make it worse, you need to try and relax your arm at least," she told him, picking up a clean towel and handing it to him.

He let out a breath, relaxing once more and watching her. "All right."

With a deep breath, she cupped his arm through the towel that was now soaked in blood and winced as she reached for the bullet with the tweezers, doing her best not to shudder as she grabbed it and pulled it out slowly. She had never done this before and it was definitely not something she would want to do on a regular basis.

He grimaced, but remained silent as he watched her intently as she worked on him.

She stared at the bullet for a moment then dropped it to the trash, making a face, "I guess you'll need stitches now."

"I'm not sure I can do it myself," he told her, his voice just barely picked up by the distorter.

Chloe glanced at him and nodded a little, "I'll do my best," she whispered, "but I need to clean it first."

"You'll do fine," he said, confident about that.

She nodded a little and cleaned the wound with the towel once more, blood running freely from it now that she had removed the bullet. She held still for a moment then went to grab another towel so she could disinfect it, "has this ever happened to you before?"

"Never this bad," he answered, wincing a little.

"Never shot at?" She asked quietly, wiping the wound gently.

"Shot at, but missed. Does that count?"

"No, not really," Chloe said quietly, "so you don't have anyone to help you when you get hurt?" She whispered, holding her breath as she picked up the needle.

"Seems I do now." He gazed at her.

Her chest tightened a little and she nodded, focusing on his arm once more, "don't move."

He gritted his teeth a little, shutting his eyes as the needle pierced his skin.

"Bite on that towel if you need to, don't break your teeth," she winced, pausing for just a second then going back to it, trying to get it over with as soon as possible.

"I'm all right," he assured her, exhaling slowly and focusing on a spot just above her head.

She nodded slightly and shifted closer, her side to him as she focused on his arm and did her best not to look toward his face.

Without really thinking about it, he reached out and gently tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, his fingers whispering across her skin.

Chloe stilled and looked over at him before she could stop herself, her eyes widening. She couldn't see his face, it was positioned in a way that it was perfectly shaded by his hood, but she really wanted to then, just so she could try and figure out what he was thinking.

"You're a beautiful woman," he told her sincerely.

She looked down focused on finishing up his arm as she gave him one last stitch. Her stomach was suddenly in knots but despite the fact that she knew nothing about this guy, his closeness was definitely doing things to her. "Well, your arms look amazing even though they are covered in blood, I think that's a really good compliment." She said, trying to brush off the compliment he had offered her.

"It is, but I'm more interested in why you're blowing off the compliment I gave you."

Frowning a little, she glanced at him again then pulled back and away, "I was just returning it." She lied, "I'm done, just need to cover it up."

"Hm." He watched her, his eyes lingering involuntarily on the low neckline of her short cotton nightgown.

"What?" She asked, suddenly a little restless as she bandaged the wound carefully. She couldn't exactly put some space between them when she had to patch up his arm.

"I have to admit that I'm admiring your nightgown," he informed her.

She stilled and swallowed hard, looking down at herself, only then remembering what she was wearing. As soon as she finished with his arm, she reached for the light switch and turned the light off once more, "yeah, I'm sure the green shamrocks on it are fascinating. I'm done."

"You're forgetting something."

"What is that?" She dared, feeling a lot more confident now that the lights were off.

"Green's my favorite color," he told her, his mouth close to her ear.

She held her breath and turned her head toward him after a moment, "you'll have to stay here, you can't use your arm." Her heart was racing and her brain was screaming at her to pull away but he was obviously flirting with her and she really didn't _want_ to.

"I agree." He lifted his good hand to her cheek, his thumb moving over it gently.

Chloe shivered slightly and held her breath, "and you'll have to take the couch," she said, wishing her voice could have sounded more firm than it did.

"Naturally," he agreed, brushing his thumb over her lower lip.

Her heart was racing now, her lips parted under his touch and she let her breath out slowly, "what do you want?"

"Right now I want to kiss you," he admitted, his heart beating a little faster, as well.

Part of her wanted to ask him why, but most of her didn't really care. This was a guy she admired, a guy that obviously trusted her more than any of the other ones had trusted her before and he wanted to _kiss_ her. She didn't care if it never went beyond that, and if it did, she didn't care if it ever went beyond tonight. She tiptoed and leaned closer, his thumb was still on her lip so she pulled her face away from his hand and brushed her nose to his before finding his lips with her own.

He groaned softly, sliding his hand up and into her hair as he returned the kiss without hesitation, nibbling gently on her lower lip before sweeping his tongue across it lightly.

Her heart was racing as she shifted closer to him, lifting her hands to the sides of his uniform to keep her balance then parting her lips under his, her tongue darting out and brushing over his as she held her breath. Suddenly the idea of just this felt so far from enough.

His fingers gently massaged the back of her neck as he slowly deepened the kiss, even as his brain tried to warn him that this was an immensely bad idea. He was already far too invested in Chloe, in her well-being, and he knew this was going to kick those feelings into high gear. But he couldn't stop himself, electricity surging between them as their tongues met and danced together like old acquaintances meeting after years of separation.

Chloe moaned quietly against his mouth and cocked her head to deepen the kiss as she pressed her body against his, his mouth felt amazing against hers and her brain had stopped working completely at this point, she just wanted to feel more of him. She had never been kissed with such intensity before.

He shifted closer to her, instinctively winding his other arm around her and hissing as pain cut through him at the movement.

She stilled and broke the kiss, her eyes widening as she turned to look at his arm, having momentarily forgotten all about the bullet wound in it, "are you okay?" 

"Yeah." His voice was a little rougher than before. "But I think I'm going to have to take a raincheck on where this was going, Gorgeous." He kissed her forehead.

Holding her breath, she nodded a little and licked her lips. Considering the last thing she wanted was to stop, it was probably a good thing he _had_ to. "I'll make the couch for you," she said quietly, looking up at him since the bathroom was completely dark and she couldn't see him even if she tried to.

"Thank you," he told her, his thumb brushing lightly over her cheek once more.

Chloe leaned into his touch for a second then pulled back and away. She knew if she kissed him again it would be even harder to stop and he needed his arm to heal, not make it worse.

With a deep breath, she nodded a little, "you can um, shower if you want to, while I do that. I just don't really have anything else for you to wear."

"I'll just wash up if that's all right," he responded, glancing at the sink.

"Yeah," she nodded once more then started toward the door, "there are more towels under the sink."

"Thank you," he said sincerely.

Nodding, she reached for the light and turned it on, stepping out of the bathroom and closing the door behind herself without looking in.

She took a deep, calming breath and rubbed her hands over her face, she was trying to think, to figure out what to make of this, especially the part where he mentioned a 'raincheck', but she couldn't think of anything past the way his lips felt against hers.

* * *

Chloe sat up on her bed when she heard a noise and frowned. She glanced at her clock and cocked her head a little, it was just past eight. She took a deep breath and rubbed her hands over her face then stilled as she remembered just what had happened the previous night.

She pushed the covers back and got up quickly, reaching for the door and stepping down the hallway, pausing again, "Arrow?" She called, wanting to give him warning and then she frowned. It smelled like coffee and... pancakes?

"Arrow?" Chloe called again, slowly making her way into the living room/kitchen area, then pausing. He was definitely not on the couch anymore and the balcony window was open. She glanced over at the kitchen and saw a pot of coffee, a plate of pancakes and a plate of bacon sitting there, waiting for her.

Despite herself, she smiled and rushed over to the balcony, looking down at the street to make sure he had made it out of there okay and when she didn't see anything on the ground floor, she checked the buildings around her own for a moment then nodded. No sign of him was a good sign.

With a deep breath, she walked back into her apartment and closed the balcony door then started back to the kitchen. Hopefully she would hear from him tonight.


	6. Chapter 6

A couple of days later found Oliver behind his desk at Queen Industries, staring blankly toward the large bay windows to his right. He tapped a pen absently on the edge of his desk. His arm ached from where he'd been shot three nights ago, and while he'd have liked to have taken some pain killers, he didn't want anyone accusing him of being drunk or taking drugs while at work. And he didn't want to take time off work because that would definitely make the board think he was incapable of running the company. 

All that aside, his mind kept drifting back to the kiss he'd shared with Chloe. 

Who, of course, had no idea that _he_ was Green Arrow. 

Sighing softly, he wondered when his life had gotten so crazy. Granted, there had always been a certain amount of chaos that just came with being a Queen. His parents had been high profile, active members of the community, always involved in some kind of charity work. And while he was more than happy to follow in their footsteps, his drive to do _more_ , to make himself work harder and live up to their expectations--or at least to a level where he hoped they were proud of him--wound up causing him even more chaos. 

Generally he didn't really mind. But after nearly losing someone he was trying to help, after getting shot himself, he felt like his world had been turned upside down. 

He wasn't invulnerable, even if he sometimes acted like he was. Even he sometimes _felt_ like he was. And if he hadn't met Chloe Sullivan, he very well may have died from that bullet wound and the blood loss he'd experienced. He'd gotten damn lucky she'd offered herself up as his sidekick. 

And now he couldn't stop thinking about her. Sure, he'd spent plenty of time reading all the articles she'd written for The Torch and even her Daily Planet articles before he'd shown up on her balcony that first night. It hadn't been hard to put together the pieces that she had been playing sidekick to another hero--the Red Blue Blur--and then she'd suddenly left Kansas and shown up in Star City. What he didn't know was why. There was another reporter covering the Blur's superhero acts now--some woman named Lois Lane. So obviously the Red Blue Blur was still around. He knew there was a lot more to the story that he didn't know, that he didn't understand. 

And he wanted to know her. 

Drawing in a breath, he stared at his phone for a moment, then reached out and dialed a number, waiting. 

"Star City Register, how can I direct your call?" 

"I need to speak with Chloe Sullivan, please," he stated. 

"One moment, please." 

"Chloe Sullivan." She answered a moment later, eyes still on the screen as she picked up her coffee and sipped on it.

A faint smile touched his mouth at the sound of her voice, and he realized he was in deeper than he'd even realized. "Good morning," he told her, his chest feeling warm. "This is Oliver."

She paused and frowned a little, then her eyes widened, "Oliver." She greeted, "oh, hi." She hadn't seen him in a while, since that day Jimmy had decided to bother her and he tried to help. She winced at the memory, that had been incredibly awkward. But with Green Arrow showing back up in her balcony and everything that had happened, she hadn't really thought of the billionaire in a few days.

"How are you?" he asked, sitting forward in his chair a little.

"I'm okay," she answered, "how are you?"

"Good," he lied, raising his eyebrows a little. "Listen, I was wondering if you were free this evening."

Chloe paused at that and looked over at her own phone that was sitting on her desk. She knew she was free, but she had been hoping to go home to try and contact Green Arrow again, to make sure he was okay since she hadn't heard from him. "Oh, what for?" She asked, then winced. It sounded rude but if it was something that could wait... "I had some tentative plans but if it's important I could reschedule," she lied.

He was silent for a moment. "Oh. No, it's okay. I mean, if you're busy, we can meet another time."

She wanted to kick herself, she couldn't pass up an opportunity with the city's billionaire on the off chance Green Arrow might contact her, "no, it's okay, it wasn't set in stone. What did you have in mind?"

"I was thinking I could update you on the construction of the community center. Maybe over dinner?"

"Oh." She sat up and nodded, "yeah, that sounds great," she said, dinner couldn't last that long after all, right? Should give her enough time to make it back by eleven or so.

"Yeah? Great. Anything in particular sound good?" he asked, a smile tugging at his lips once more.

"I liked your choice last time, so you can go ahead and choose it." She said, sitting back once more.

"All right. Why don't we hit Pastabilities this time?" he suggested, remembering how well she said she liked Italian food.

"Okay," she agreed, "I can meet you there, what time?"

"Seven-ish?"

"Yeah," she smiled a little and nodded, she'd be home by ten, "seven works."

"All right. I'll see you then." He smiled, too, relaxing a little.

"See you then," she agreed before hanging up.

He chewed the inside of his cheek as the line went dead. That hadn't gone exactly as he'd hoped.

* * *

Chloe got to the restaurant at seven, she had planned on getting there a few minutes early but it had been hard to find parking, but at least she was on time. She spoke with the hostess and was surprised to hear he was already there. She had heard all about how much he liked being late for things after all.

She followed the girl to a table toward the back of the restaurant and smiled when she saw him. Considering last time they spoke, she was glad this was for work and hopefully things wouldn't be too awkward.

He rose to his feet when he spotted her, smiling back without hesitation, and trying to ignore how fast his heart was suddenly beating. "Hey. Glad you could make it."

"Thank you," she told the girl before she left and nodded at Oliver, "thank you for inviting me," she told him, extending her hand.

Oliver reached out and shook her hand, holding his breath for a moment as he met her eyes.

She had no idea where that had come from, but her heart suddenly skipped a beat as she held his gaze, but she kept her smile on her face and looked down at her seat once she pulled her hand from his, "I hope you haven't been waiting long, it wasn't easy to find parking."

He shook his head. "Don't worry about it," he assured her.

Chloe placed her purse over the back of her chair then smiled at him once more, "is this your favorite place, then?"

"Definitely." He paused as he sat down. "Well, at least in Star City."

"And overall?" She asked, unable to stop herself.

He leaned in a little. "There's a restaurant in Italy that has, literally, the best pizza in the world."

Chloe grinned a little at that, amused and shook her head, "of course. I guess you can't compete with the original."

He grinned back, his eyes bright. "You might just have to do a story on it sometime."

She arched her eyebrows, "well, we do have a food critic on staff, I doubt the editor would let me."

"That's a shame," he told her, searching her eyes.

Chloe nodded slightly then shrugged, "I guess you can't crave what you've never had, right?"

"I don't know about that," he answered. "I think just the knowledge that something exists is enough to make a person crave it."

She looked at him for a moment, "unless you're really good about denial."

A faint smile touched his mouth at that. "I'm not," he admitted.

"I am," she told him, arching her eyebrows once more.

"Because you've had to be? Or because you've chosen to be?" he questioned, cocking his head to the side.

Chloe considered him for a moment, "because I had to choose to be." She answered. 

Oliver paused at that. "I see," he murmured.

She smiled at him then looked down at the menu, "so what do you normally have here?"

"Well, everything's very good, so it usually depends on my mood. I was leaning toward fettuccine alfredo this evening." He looked down at his own menu, his stomach knotting a little.

"Have you ever tried the gnocchi?" She asked, glancing over at him. 

Oliver shook his head a little. "No, I don't think so."

"Maybe I'll try it then," she told him, glancing at him then back at the menu, "not a lot of restaurants have it." 

He smiled faintly. "Would you like some wine with dinner?"

She arched her eyebrows a little and considered him for a moment then nodded, "sure, I suppose I am off the clock."

Oliver smiled a bit more at that, nodding. "White or red?"

"Red?" She said, not sure of what to answer. She wasn't exactly a wine drinker.

He nodded again and closed the menu. "That's what I was thinking about, too."

She nodded too and closed the menu as well, sitting back against her chair, "so what did you want to tell me about the center?"

"Well, for one, the construction is ahead of schedule." He leaned back, a real smile gracing his lips. "If it continues as quickly as it's progressing now, it'll be ready to open a month sooner than we'd planned."

She looked at him, surprised, "oh, that's great, Oliver. I'll be sure to mention that in the article once it opens."

"I've also started the hiring process," he told her. "So far we have two youth counselors--and they'll alternate between staying at the center and managing a crisis line for teens in trouble. I've also hired a retired teacher to be available each evening for a few hours for homework assistance."

Her face softened at that and she smiled at him, not surprised at how thorough he was being, "that will be great for the kids."

He smiled back at her. "I still need to hire an activities director and several others, of course, but it feels like it's all starting to come together."

"I can't wait to see it when it's functioning already," she said sincerely, "do you think you'll start working on other centers right away or wait to see how this one goes first?"

He leaned forward once more. "I definitely want to make sure this one is up and functioning smoothly first. Make sure that the kids here are getting the attention and help they need. Plus it'll make it easier when opening centers in other places if I can learn from the process here."

"Understandable," she nodded a little, smiling at him, "and considering the size of the population, that should take care of about a third of the kids?"

Oliver nodded, as well. "I already have ideas for expanding this one," he confessed. 

"It's a really big project," she told him, "are you planning on being there yourself?"

"Definitely," he said without hesitation. "As often as possible, between work and--" He paused, his chest tightening as he realized he'd nearly spilled the beans on his night time work.

Chloe arched her eyebrows a little and waited for him to continue.

But before he could, their waitress came by to take their orders, so she reluctantly turned her attention to the girl and ordered for herself. Oliver placed his order as well, picking up his glass of water and taking a drink and mentally smacking himself upside the head.

The distraction wasn't enough for her to forget about it, however, so she brought them back to the conversation, "so what else has been keeping you busy?"

He drew in a breath and smiled softly. "A lot of social obligations, unfortunately. Which is still more QI related than anything, but..." He shrugged a little.

"Ah," she nodded, sipping on her water too, "makes sense, I'm surprised you make time to go for runs with everything you have going on," she said sincerely.

"It helps me keep focused when I have to be," he admitted honestly.

Chloe nodded and leaned back against her seat once more, "was there anything else you wanted to tell me?"

 _Yes_ , he thought immediately, though he didn't say it out loud. "Well, I may have had a slight ulterior motive in asking you to have dinner with me," he confessed.

She arched her eyebrows and her heart skipped a beat once more. She wished it would stop doing that, "you did?" She asked.

He held his breath even as he nodded. "I wanted to see how you were settling into the city." He paused, looking down momentarily, then back up at her, a wry smile touching his mouth. "Mostly I just wanted to see you."

Her eyes widened and she stared at him, her stomach suddenly tight and her cheeks felt hot, "oh."

He felt his stomach tighten, too. The expression on her face wasn't exactly one of joy. He chewed the inside of his cheek for a moment. But he'd already put it out there, he might as well go for broke. "I like you, Chloe. And I'd really like to get to know you better."

Chloe did her best not to wince as she shifted on her seat, she had no idea what to do or say, her heart was racing and the truth was, she liked him too, but then there was Green Arrow and... as much as Oliver Queen had a name for himself, she doubted anyone would _ever_ kiss her like that.

"I-- don't know if I gave you the wrong impression," she admitted, looking back at him, "but I'm kind of seeing someone," she had made out with him _once_ and she was telling the world's most eligible bachelor that she was seeing someone. That was stupid, even for her standards. 

Immediately his eyes widened a little. "Oh. I'm sorry. That was really presumptuous of me. Of course you are." He smiled faintly, shifting in his chair and quickly taking a drink.

"I'm sorry, Oliver," she said sincerely, shaking her head, "you're a great guy and if things were different..." she pursed her lips together, "I'm flattered, I really am, I just didn't realize..." she trailed off since she had no idea where she was going with this.

"It's all right. You don't have to apologize," he told her, setting his glass down once more. "You were definitely worth taking a risk for." Even if he felt like someone had socked him in the gut.

Holding her breath, she looked down and shifted on her seat uncomfortably, "we don't have to stay," things were awkward enough as it was.

Oliver looked up at her once more, swallowing hard. "Let me first...apologize for making you uncomfortable. It certainly wasn't my intention," he told her sincerely. "And I meant what I said. I would like to get to know you, Chloe. Even if we're only ever just friends."

Chloe let her breath out slowly and looked at him for a moment, "are you sure that's a good idea?"

He cocked his head to the side, watching her. "You think it's not?"

She took a deep breath, trying to pull herself together, "I like spending time with you too," she admitted, looking over at him, "I just don't want to make anything complicated."

"Right," he murmured. "And I don't want to cause any problems for you and the lucky guy."

She relaxed a little at that, "I'm not in the position to turn down friends," she admitted, "I don't really talk to anyone except for the two of you." 

_And Green Arrow_ , he thought, even as he smiled very faintly and nodded. "I'm not really in a position to turn them down either. Especially ones who don't have ulterior motives for being around me."

Her face softened and she nodded a little at him, searching his eyes. Now she felt really guilty for wanting to be done with dinner so she could go check in on Green Arrow, who may or may not contact her tonight. Maybe she was even more stupid than she thought for turning him down so quickly. 

He was relieved when the waitress chose that moment to return with their dinner. He thanked her and glanced across the table to Chloe. "So what do you say? We're already here, the food smells great..." He raised his eyebrows.

Chloe held her breath and nodded slightly, smiling softly at him, "and the company is good," she admitted, watching him closely. 

He relaxed at that, a soft smile of his own forming on his face once more. "Yes, it is," he agreed, meeting her eyes.

She smiled a little more and nodded, reaching for her wine and sipping on it before looking down at her plate, feeling a whole hell of a lot more confused than she had in a long time because suddenly, turning Oliver down just felt like a huge mistake.


	7. Chapter 7

It had been four days since she'd heard from Green Arrow at all. Four days that she spent at least two hours with the communicator in her ear, trying to contact him. She didn't even know if he was alive at this point and while logically she knew he probably wasn't patrolling because of his arm, she was pretty sure he was capable of picking up his earpiece and letting her know he was still breathing.

She was more than a little frustrated with the complete silence from his end, so when Oliver suggested going to see a play, she didn't hesitate before saying yes. Despite his reassurance that they were hanging out as just friends, it sounded like a date and for the time being? She really didn't care if it was.

The play didn't start until eight, so she went home after work, picked out a summer dress, had dinner and made her way over to the beach. It was in an open theater and for what she had read, the local theater company put on these plays at a very affordable price during all the summer to encourage people coming out and seeing them.

She picked up her phone from her purse and checked it. Seven forty-five, at least she was on time, so she dropped her phone back in her purse and looked around, trying to find Oliver.

He was nervous as he made his way away from the concession stand by the large outdoor stage. He hadn't spotted Chloe yet, and he wasn't sure if she'd be thirsty, but he'd gotten two bottles of water just in case. He glanced around, his gaze coming to rest on her familiar figure, and he sucked in a breath as he took in the summery cotton sun dress she wore. It was a light tan color with delicate pink roses printed on it. It gave her a softer look than usual and he couldn't help but admire the way it hugged her curves just perfectly. He smiled at her as he moved closer. "You look great," he told her.

Chloe turned around when she heard him and smiled brightly, "hey," she greeted then shrugged a little, "thank you. I wasn't sure where we were supposed to meet."

"And somehow it worked out." His own smile brightened at the sight of her smiling. He held a bottle of water out toward her.

"Thank you," she told him again, taking the bottle from him then cocking her head, "aren't you hot in that?" She asked, noticing his long-sleeved shirt.

 _Yes_ , he thought immediately, though he shook his head. "Sometimes it gets a little chilly on the beach at night."

"Oh," she nodded a little and smiled softly, "I guess you can handle heat better than I can anyway," she pointed out.

He smiled back. "Should we find a couple seats?" he suggested, glancing over to the seating area.

"Yeah," she agreed, adjusting her purse over her shoulder, "do you come to these a lot?"

"Not as often as I'd like," he admitted.

"I was reading about the program," she told him, following him to the seats, "it sounds like a good idea."

"It's a nice thing to have on nights like this," he agreed, waiting until she'd sat down before he sat down beside her.

"Yeah," she agreed, "and it's probably a good thing they do it later in the evening or it'd probably be too hot for everyone involved."

"Definitely." He glanced at her sideways. "How's work been?"

"Good," she nodded, "I have been getting much better stories since I printed the interview with you, so thank you," she smiled, pulling up her water bottle and opening it.

Oliver smiled at that, relaxing back against his chair. "You're welcome. I'm glad I could help out."

Chloe looked over at him for a moment then nodded a little, "how is your work?"

"Busy, as usual," he confessed. "It's nice to have a break."

"As busy as my job keeps me, I'm sure it's not nearly as bad as yours," she told him, sipping on her water.

"Oh, I don't know. I think the world of news is probably pretty non-stop, too." He glanced at her.

"It is, but I'm not the only reporter at the Register," she told him, "and you're the only CEO."

Oliver considered that for a moment, a small smile touching his mouth. "This is true."

Chloe smiled back at him and was about to say something else when the lights dimmed over the audience and brightened over the stage. She sat back against her seat and relaxed a little. It really was ridiculously easy to talk to him, she wished it wasn't.

* * *

After the play, the crowd dispersed quickly and Oliver rose to his feet, holding his hand out toward Choe to help her up. "What'd you think?" There was still an amused smile on his face.

She took his hand and smiled up at him, nodding, "it was good," she said as she stood up, "I had never heard of that play before but it was very entertaining, did you like it?"

"I did. It was funny," he agreed with a grin when she took his hand.

"It was," she agreed, her eyes bright as she looked up at him for a moment then started down the row, "and it didn't even get chilly."

He followed her, chewing the inside of his cheek. It wasn't even close to being chilly. Although it also wasn't unpleasantly hot anymore, either. "True. Actually I'm thinking about ice cream," he informed her.

She glanced at him over her shoulder then paused so they could walk side by side, "ice cream?"

Oliver nodded, then lifted his arm to point in the distance. "Dippin' Dots. Have you ever had it?"

She grinned softly and nodded, glancing at the stand, "of course. Sounds good. I haven't had them in forever."

He grinned back. "Me either," he confessed. "But it is my favorite."

"Better than authentic Italian gelato?" She teased, smirking at him.

Oliver cocked his head to the side. "Well. No." He chuckled softly.

"Didn't think so," she grinned softly, "although I doubt the Italians make milkshakes as well as we do."

"Point," he agreed, nodding. "Or burgers."

"And I'm guessing not fries either, but I guess that's supposedly what the French are good at." She smirked as they approached the stand.

"The French are also experts at coffee," he informed her, grinning as he glanced at her sideways. "Which I have a sneaking suspicion you'd appreciate."

"Very much so, although, I've heard the Italians are even better at it," she pointed out, "what's your opinion?"

He chewed the inside of his cheek. "Honestly? I'm not a big coffee connoisseur," he admitted.

"I knew there had to be _something_ wrong with you," she told him, arching her eyebrows.

He laughed at that. "There are plenty of things wrong with me," he informed her, amused.

"Certainly not as grave as your lack of love for coffee," she pointed out and stepped in line for the ice cream stand.

Shaking his head, he had to resist the urge to wrap his arms around her shoulders and pull her closer to him. "My fatal flaw," he joked.

Chloe grinned up at him and nodded a little, stepping forward as the line moved, "so what are you having?"

"I'm thinking about strawberry," he told her, raising his eyebrows. "How about you?"

"Peanut butter and chocolate," she told him, "tell me you don't like chocolate too and I think we'll have to put this whole friendship thing to an end."

He hung his head. "Chocolate's fine. But peanut butter isn't my friend."

Her eyes narrowed at him and she shook her head, "I don't know how I feel about that, not even in sandwiches?"

"I have an allergy," Oliver told her with a small smile.

"Oh..." she blinked, raising her eyebrows, "to peanuts? That's horrible..."

He smiled. "I've never had peanut butter, so I guess I don't know what I'm missing."

"I guess it goes back to our Italian pizza conversation," she smirked at him, taking another step forward.

He couldn't help but smirk at that, as well. "Touche. Guess that means we've come full circle."

"Something like that," she grinned, looking up at him, "and I guess it makes us even."

"Apparently." He smiled as he met her eyes, even though he knew they were nowhere close to being even. She had, after all, saved his life. She just didn't realize it.

She held his gaze for a moment and her heart skipped a beat once more, as hard as she tried to ignore it, it seemed to happen a lot around him. With a smile, she looked away and stepped forward, finally ordering her ice cream.

He held his breath when she stepped forward, guilt tugging at him. It wasn't exactly fair that she was helping both his alter ego and himself and didn't know it.

Chloe pulled out her wallet and looked at him over her shoulder, "aren't you going to order? I'm buying."

Oliver raised his eyebrows at that, a faint smile touching his mouth. He glanced at the girl at the stand. "I'll take a small strawberry, thanks," he told her.

She grinned softly when she noticed the girl was staring at him much like the way the waitresses were staring at him the first time they met at the diner, better yet, the time he rescued her from her car. She paid then put her wallet away and handed him his ice cream, waiting until they had taken a couple of steps away from the stand to speak, "I don't know how you can stand it."

He blinked, taking his ice cream from her and taking a bite. "Stand what?" he asked, glancing down at her.

"The way girls constantly stare at you," she told him, taking a bite of her own, "well and some guys too."

"Oh." He considered for a moment. "Honestly, most of the time, I don't even notice anymore."

"I guess that makes sense," she told him, shrugging a little, "you're probably used to it anyway."

"It was a little weird after I got back," he admitted.

Chloe glanced at him once more and nodded a little as they walked slowly, she guessed toward the beach, "because you were in that island without anyone around for a long time or because they were giving you the 'wow, you're not dead' looks instead of the usual 'wow, you're really hot' ones?"

He chuckled. "You really have a way with words," he informed her.

She grinned softly at that and shrugged, "maybe, but you didn't answer my question."

He grinned back. "Yeah, I guess it was probably a combination of both and also instead of 'I wonder how much money he really has' looks."

"I don't know if those actually exist," she told him, "I mean anyone with googling capacity can at least find out how much your company is worth. That should give them some idea."

"Most people don't tend to think about actual researching," he pointed out.

"True, but if they were _really_ curious they would," she smirked.

"Maybe," he conceded, amused. "So you think most of the looks I get now are the 'wow, he's really hot' ones?" His voice was teasing.

"Yep, I think that's probably the most accurate way to describe it," she told him, taking another bite of her ice cream and smirking. She knew this was obviously flirting and it was kind of her fault since she had been the one to bring that up in the first place, but it felt... natural and relaxed and she wouldn't feel bad for having a good time with someone else when the guy she was supposedly seeing, which she knew she wasn't really, had completely vanished on her.

He grinned involuntarily as they walked side-by-side farther down the beach. There was no one around now and he glanced at her sideways. "Are you happy here? In Star City?" he asked quietly.

Chloe paused at the question and arched her eyebrows, glancing at him once more, this time with surprise, "loaded question much?" She teased, smiling softly and taking a deep breath as she considered, "yeah, I think so." She admitted, "I'm still getting used to some of it like being away from pretty much everyone I know, but... I like being here." It was definitely a lot better than what her life had been like back in Kansas.

He was quiet for a moment, considering her answer as they walked and taking another bite of his ice cream. "Can I ask you a personal question?"

"Yeah?" She said, mostly because she was curious about what it would be.

"What made you decide to leave Kansas?" he asked softly.

She took a deep breath at that and looked down at the sand on her flip-flops as they walked slowly, "it was a combination of things," she admitted, "I got fired from my dream job, my best friend and I grew apart and my boyfriend broke up with me," she shrugged a little, "felt like a good time to make some big changes."

He winced, his chest tightening a little at the barest hint of pain in her voice. "Sounds like it," he said quietly, reaching out hesitantly with his hand that wasn't holding his cup of ice cream and giving her hand a light squeeze.

Chloe looked down at their hands and smiled a little, squeezing his hand back but not looking up at him as her chest tightened. He was obviously a genuinely nice guy and he was, or at least had been, interested in her and she turned him down for a guy she had absolutely no idea who he was and even though Green Arrow had been the reason she moved there in the first place, she felt more and more like she had gone about this the wrong way.

As she usually did.

"Well, for what it's worth, I'm personally very glad that you picked this city over all the others in the world." He gave her a soft but very sincere smile as he looked at her once more.

She took a deep breath and looked up at him again, looking at him for a moment then nodding and smiling softly, "thank you. I am too." Even if she couldn't tell him the real reason why she had.

He held his breath as their eyes met once more. "One more question."

"And I thought I was the reporter here," she told him but smiled a little more and nodded a little.

"This guy that you're seeing. He does know how lucky he is, right?"

Her stomach tightened at that and she looked away from him, "I'll have to get back to you on that one."

"Because he should definitely know," he murmured.

"Thank you," she said quietly, glancing over at the ocean rather than at him and squeezing his hand once more.


	8. Chapter 8

It was nearly a week later when Green Arrow showed up on her balcony once more.

His arm wasn't healed yet of course--not nearly healed. In fact it was bandaged again--a fresh, clean bandage--and technically he wasn't even out patrolling. He felt like a horrible shit for not having contacted her before now because somewhere in the back of his mind, he knew she was worrying about him. But after her admission to him -- to _Oliver_ \--that she was seeing someone, he hadn't wanted to risk contact with her because he wasn't sure he'd be able to stop himself from kissing her again and frankly that just wasn't fair to either of them or to whoever this other guy was.

So, determined not to be anything but professional with her, he knocked lightly on her door, then leaned back against the railing and waited.

Chloe stilled when she heard the knock, her heart racing all of the sudden and she stopped talking. She was sitting by her desk in the corner of her living room, on the phone with her dad when she heard him and so she hung up quickly, telling him she had another call then stood up and made her way over to the balcony, opening the door quickly and staring at him for a full moment.

She was incredibly relieved to see he was alive, but that didn't mean she wasn't mad at him. She had been worried sick about him, not to mention incredibly confused by what the hell was going on because while she wouldn't have assumed any kind of commitment from him because they kissed once, the fact that he had made her a complete breakfast the following morning had to have been more than a 'thank you for stitching me up', or so she thought anyway.

"Good," she said, eying his arm then looking back toward his face, "you're alive."

"Thanks to you." He remained still, sizing her up and taking note of the tension in her body. She was pissed, and he damn well knew it.

With a deep breath she arched her eyebrows a little, she wanted to scream at him, but she knew she didn't really have any right to, "I'm pretty sure you're not supposed to be using your arm yet, so if that was all you wanted to let me know, you could have used the communicator you gave me, I _have_ been checking in every night."

"Sorry. I wanted to see you in person, Sidekick." He cocked his head to the side, wondering how she was able to keep that clear-cut anger in check so damn well. Maybe she could school him in _that_.

Chloe arched her eyebrows at that and stared at him, crossing her arms over her chest but remaining silent. If he wanted to see her, he better have something to say because she sure as hell wasn't inviting him back inside, no matter how much that one kiss had been haunting her all these days.

He watched her back, then sighed a little. "I'm sorry," he said again, this time more sincerely, which he wasn't entirely sure came across over the voice distorter. 

"All I'm saying," she said, staring at him, "is that next time something like this happens, at the _very least_ you can let me know you're not dead." She told him sharply. "I don't think that's asking for too much."

He kinda hoped to never be shot again, but he was smart enough to nod his agreement and not make a smart ass remark, even if it was on the tip of his tongue.

She barely caught his nod because of the hood but nodded too, dropping her arms and looking at his arm once more, "how's your arm?"

"Healing. Not as quickly as I'd like, but it'll get there. Thank you. For helping me."

"I did offer," she told him, glancing over at him.

"I know. But it means more than you know. Having someone to count on." He gazed at her for a moment.

Her chest tightened at that and she looked down, "I know how much it means."

"Because your other hero let you know?" 

Chloe's jaw clenched a little at that and she stared back at him, "you think only heroes need someone they can count on?" She asked.

He was surprised by the question and he paused for a moment before answering, "No, I don't."

"Just because you're the one out there and you're the one putting yourself in danger it doesn't mean this is one-sided and only for _your_ convenience," she went on, her voice tight as she took a step forward, "you don't get to just completely vanish for days and come back when you're bleeding or when you need information on something. I'm not the one hiding behind a costume, you know everything you can about me and I don't even know your _name_ and I still chose to trust you, but I do not want to be treated as your _sidekick_. I'm risking myself for this too and I expect at the very least the same amount of trust and respect." She hadn't realized how angry she'd been at him until now, but she was not going to let him walk all over her like Clark had for years and she was not going to let him make her feel like Clark had.

And in the very short minute or so that she spent telling him off, Oliver learned more about her than he had over the past several weeks. She'd also efficiently answered his question, even if she hadn't really _meant_ to. He watched her for a moment, watched the anger flicker over her face, the tension knotting her shoulders. After a few seconds more, he pulled a small object out of his vest and held it out to her silently, waiting.

Chloe stared down at the flash drive and glanced at him, rolling her eyes and shaking her head. Of course. Just like she had just accused him of, he wanted information this time. She wanted to say no and tell him to leave but she knew she couldn't simply because even if he was still an asshole, whatever it was that he wanted information on could potentially save lives or at the very least help people.

She didn't reach out for the device either, however. "What is it?"

"A little gift," he informed her. "I've been hitting the research myself for the past few days and I think I stumbled onto something you could use as your next big story." He cocked his head to the side.

Her jaw tightened a little more and she took the offered flash drive, taking a deep breath to try and calm herself down, "what is it about?"

"Some city hall corruption," he informed her. "I wasn't sure if politics was really your thing or if it might be if the angle was right." He paused. "And for the record, I do trust and respect you or I wouldn't be here." He straightened, raising his eyebrows behind the dark glasses he wore. "Also, for the record, the night we met you actually offered to be my sidekick. Your words. That doesn't mean I think you incapable of more. Anyone who looks at you with less respect than as a partner is an idiot. I'm sorry if that's how you felt."

"I will look into it," she told him, her hand wrapping around the flash drive and then she took a deep breath. "But we need a better communication system because I know exactly two people in this city that I actually talk to on a regular basis and you are one of them, so I would like to be able to contact you when I need you and not just when you're available."

He paused at that, cocking his head to the side. "Two people?" That didn't make sense, unless she didn't want it known that she was associating in any way with his _other_ identity. Unless...

"Yes." She told him, arching her eyebrows, "and I understand you have a life outside of this and you can't always be contacted but I need to have a way to find you if I need to, especially if I find something and I need to go over it with you."

Christ, he was an idiot. _Green Arrow_ was the "other guy" that he was competing with. He blinked, forcing himself to focus on her words. "Right."

With a deep, calming breath, she looked down at the device in her hand, "so what do you suggest?"

He considered that for a long moment. "I'll get a pager. You'll be the only one who has the number."

She looked at him for a moment then nodded, taking a deep breath and arching her eyebrows, "and I suppose you have my number already so you can send me a text with the information?"

"Good guess, Gorgeous." He smiled.

Chloe gave him a look at that and cocked her head a little.

"What?" he asked innocently.

"Is this everything?" She asked, raising the flash drive.

"No," he admitted, shaking his head a little. "That's just for your personal benefit."

She paused at that and dropped her hand, taking a deep breath, "okay, what else?"

He was silent for a moment. "There's an event coming up. This weekend. The mayor's birthday." His jaw tightened a little. "I've gotten word that the present is going to be in the form of a young girl."

Chloe's eyes widened at that and she shifted, staring up at him, "a young girl?"

He gave a short nod. "The rumor is the mayor likes them young."

She shuddered at that and took a deep breath, nodding a little, "underage prostitutes."

"I can't go in as myself," he told her, looking down at his uniform. "At least not without confirmation."

Her eyes widened a little more, "so you want me to go in and see if it's true."

"I don't want to put you in any danger," he said honestly.

"You'll be around, right?" She asked, cocking her head.

He gave a quick, short nod. "In your ear the whole time. We'll need a safe word. One you can say if you're in trouble."

"How about Arrow?" She suggested.

"That works." He watched her for a moment. "Are you comfortable with this? Because if you're not, we can come up with another plan."

Chloe took a deep breath and nodded, "it won't be the first time I go undercover somewhere."

"That's not what I asked." His voice grew more quiet.

"Yes, I'm comfortable with it," she said firmly, staring up at him.

He stared down at her in the darkness of the night. "All right." He shifted closer, itching to reach out and pull her to him, to kiss again.

"Okay," she told him, arching her eyebrows, "I'll talk to you on Saturday then, what time?"

"I'll contact you with details by five," he told her, reaching out and cupping her cheek in one of his gloved hands.

Her eyes widened a little and she stared up at him, she was about to pull back but she stopped herself, "what are you doing?"

"What I've been thinking about doing for the last several days," he informed her before dipping his head and capturing her lips with his own, his hand sliding up and into her hair as his other arm slipped around her waist, not holding too tight because of his still-healing injury.

Chloe stilled and even as she started to return the kiss, she pulled back, lifting her hands to his chest and pushing him away half-heartedly, "stop," she told him, taking a deep breath and pulling away, "I think you've confused me enough."

"That was never my intention," he said honestly.

She took another deep breath and took a deep breath, shaking her head a little as she looked away, "I'll see you on Saturday." She repeated, her heart racing, her stomach in knots, she didn't want to tell him to leave and she wanted to kiss him again, but she knew she was only going to get herself hurt again if she did.

"I'm sorry." He turned away from her, heading to the edge of her balcony.

Chloe stared at him for a moment then turned around and headed back inside, pulling the glass door closed and pulling the curtains shut without a second look.

* * *

She couldn't wrap her head around it, the fact that Green Arrow suddenly seemed interested in her again and Oliver Queen didn't seem to have given up either and it wasn't really about her picking one because she really didn't _have_ either one of them and she liked both of them and one of them seemed to be obviously better for her than the other but...

Holding her breath, she pulled herself out of her thoughts with a deep sigh when her phone began to ring. She pushed herself up from the couch where she'd been curled up since Green Arrow left, she hadn't even looked at the flash drive yet, and picked up her phone, holding her breath when she saw Oliver's name on the screen. She pursed her lips together and considered not picking up but considering he rarely ever called her, she decided it could be an emergency.

"Hello?" She answered, doing her best to keep her voice neutral.

"Chloe? Hey, it's Oliver."

"Hey," she greeted, walking back to the couch and holding her breath, "what's up?"

"Nothing, really. It just occurred to me that...I'd never called you before." Wow, Queen. Could you sound anymore lame? he thought, resisting the urge to bang his head into the wall.

"Oh," her chest tightened at that. And of course he would choose _tonight_ of all nights to call her. "Not while I wasn't at work."

"Oh, right. Well, yeah. Hadn't called you at home. And friends do that, right?" he asked uncertainly.

"Yeah," she whispered, clearing her throat and taking a deep breath, "they do." She added, trying to make her voice sound normal.

There was a moment of silence. "Chloe? Are you all right?"

"Yeah," she answered, a little more firmly this time, "I'm fine, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Oliver said quickly, feeling like an ass. No wonder she was confused. And he was the dumbest guy on the planet.

Chloe pulled the phone away and took a deep breath before pulling the phone back to her ear, "slow night?" She asked, trying her best to keep the conversation going. She wanted to talk to him, even if it made it worse once they hung up, it was nice to have company, in a way.

"Just a little lonely," he told her quietly, sitting down at his desk once more and chewing on the inside of his cheek.

Her stomach clenched at that and she looked down, "I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault," he assured her. "But it is why I called. I wanted to hear a friendly voice." And he wanted to check on her, to make sure she was okay after he'd shown up at her door as his alter ego and confused the hell out of her.

"I'm glad you did," she said quietly, wrapping her arm around her knees, "I wanted to hear a friendly voice too." She admitted, her voice wavering a little.

His chest tightened. "Well, anytime you need to, you're welcome to call me."

Chloe took a deep breath and let it out as quietly as possible, "thank you. You too."

"Are you sure you're all right? We could meet somewhere if you wanted," he offered, guilt making his stomach turn.

"I can't," she told him quietly, shaking her head, "I have something I need to work on, but I'll be fine. I can talk to you for a while though."

"All right. I just...you sound upset," he said worriedly. Upset because of him. _Asshole_ , he cursed.

"It's just... guy stuff. It will go away. It always does," she told him, "what's going on with you?"

Oliver winced at that, rubbing a hand over his face wearily, trying to ignore the aching throb in his arm. "Still at work," he told her, exhaling slowly.

Chloe frowned and looked over at the clock, "it's past eleven," she told him, worry in her voice now.

"Yeah. I know. Reports and numbers and...I may have fallen asleep in the middle of looking at them earlier today, delaying when I can actually leave."

"Maybe you should go home and get some actual rest rather than push yourself," she said.

The concern in her voice actually _hurt_. He rubbed his hand over his face again. "Yeah, maybe."

She sat up a little and held her breath, "are you too tired to drive? I can come get you."

The thought of _her_ going out alone after dark, in an area of town that wasn't the safest made him feel unsettled. "No, I'm all right. It's only a couple blocks from the penthouse," he assured her.

"Okay," she said quietly, leaning back against the couch, "but I would feel better if I could stay on the phone with you while you drive if you're leaving."

A soft smile touched his mouth. "Deal," he agreed, shutting down the computer that he hadn't shut down before going to see her earlier, and rising to his feet. "I'm shutting things down as we speak."

She smiled softly at that, her chest tightening even more as she did. And he listened to her on top of it, why did he have to be so goddamn perfect? "Glad to hear it."

"Am I keeping you from work?" he asked, wincing a little even as the words escaped him. He knew he was.

"I haven't started yet," she admitted, looking at the flash drive again and taking a deep breath, "I guess I should, but I can multitask."

"I just don't want to monopolize all your time," he said quietly. And that was the truth. He picked up his keys as he headed for the door.

"You won't, you're not... I meant it when I said I was glad you called," she said quietly, dropping her feet to the floor and standing up.

His chest felt heavy at the soft, almost sad tone of her voice. "Chloe, listen...we should get together soon. Maybe Sunday afternoon?" He chewed the inside of his cheek, his heart beginning to beat more quickly in his chest.

Chloe paused at that and arched her eyebrows a little, "I guess we can," she said, a little confused, "I do have to work on Saturday but I should be free on Sunday." As long as everything went well in the mission with Green Arrow, that was. "But if it's urgent, I could meet you sometime tomorrow?"

He held his breath at that. "Sunday would be better for me," he said softly. "I've got a lot of meetings tomorrow." And he wasn't sure he would be prepared for what he needed to tell her by tomorrow.

"Okay," she agreed, then pulled the chair by her desk back and sat down on it, "I guess it's a good thing you're going home, then."

"Thanks to you." He smiled faintly as he made his way down the stairwell so he didn't lose the call with her by taking the elevator.

"I've had quite a few long nights myself too and it's really pointless. After a while you hit a wall and you need a break, not even coffee can help," she said sincerely, holding the phone between her ear and shoulder as she plugged the flashdrive to her computer.

"Good point. Good thing I have you to remind me of these things," he told her, wondering if she'd still be around to remind him of those things after Sunday.

"I learned it the hard way, you don't have to." She promised, her voice growing quiet again as her chest felt even tighter. She really liked him, he was nice and attentive and open and he obviously had no problems with reaching out to her when he needed to or just... hanging out with her even though she had so _stupidly_ turned him down.

But she couldn't deny that she had feelings for Green Arrow too. And despite his vanishing act, he had never really been an asshole to her and his apology _had_ seemed sincere. And he was obviously scared of putting her in danger.

Without realizing it, she sighed deeply against the receiver as she sat back on her chair. She had to focus on work or she would drive herself insane.

"You sound tired," he commented quietly as he exited Queen Tower, heading for his car.

Just emotionally, she answered silently then shook her head, "no, just... starting on work. Maybe if I can write an article overnight and make it a good one, I won't even go in tomorrow." She would need time to prep for Saturday after all and that included shopping for something uncomfortably slutty, which was so far from what she usually went with.

"Sounds like maybe you could use a break."

"You're not throwing my words against me, are you?" She asked in as much of a teasing voice as she could.

He couldn't help but grin at that. "Well, to be fair, they were wise words." He slid into the driver's seat.

"So are do as I say, not as I do," she pointed out, opening the documents and, much to her surprise, photographic evidence of what the Arrow told her was going on at city hall, her eyes widening at what she saw.

Oliver chuckled at that. "I'm starting my car," he told her, turning the key and revving the engine.

She blinked a couple of times when he spoke, her heart beating quickly as she looked at the pictures that _clearly_ showed cash being handed out to the city's biggest judge. She was going to be in so much trouble when this story got printed. "Glad to hear it," she told him distractedly.

Oliver was quiet for a few seconds. "All right, so now that I'm safely in my car, I should probably let you get to work. And I'll text you when I get home. Sound okay?"

Chloe hesitated at that then nodded a little, considering she wanted to devour the information in front of her, it was probably a good and safer idea. The last thing she wanted to do was to babble something about Green Arrow to him. "Okay, how long should it take you?"

"About five minutes or so."

"Okay, I'll call you if you don't text me in about seven," she told him, "are you sure you'll stay awake?"

He suppressed a smile at that. "I'll be fine," he assured her.

"Okay," she agreed, "be safe."

"Always," he said quietly. Except when he was getting shot, anyway. He drew in a breath and let it out slowly as he hung up the phone, chewing the inside of his cheek. His heart was beating hard in his chest.

He was going to tell her everything.

He just had to wait until Sunday.


	9. Chapter 9

With a deep, shaky breath, Chloe stepped into the elevator that was going to lead her to the Mayor's penthouse, one of them anyway, where the party was currently happening. To say she was uncomfortable didn't even begin to cover it. She was wearing a bright red dress two sizes too small and she felt like it was squishing her in all the wrong places. She had gone for tight and bright, but she hadn't been able to push herself to go with short and low cut on top of it.

There was some cleavage but not too much of it and it was quite a few inches above her knees but her ass wasn't hanging out of it either. She just knew she wouldn't have been able to remain confident enough to deal with everything and do her job on top of it.

Once the elevator doors opened, she stood up straight and held her breath, a bouncer looking guy was standing at the door and staring down at her. She did her best to smile up at him. "I'm here for the Mayor," she said, dragging out her vowels and trying to sound as vapid as possible.

She was almost disappointed when it worked so easily, the man didn't even look at her twice before making room for her to walk into the apartment. There were men everywhere, a couple of waitresses and girls who were most definitely more scantily dressed than she was.

As she lowered her head, she pulled a short curl of her blond hair over her earpiece to make sure it was covered and let out her breath, "I'm in." She told Green Arrow.

"Are you feeling okay with this? There's still time to back out."

"I swear if you ask me that one more time I'll quit responding to you," she said sharply, pretending to look down at her dress as she lowered her head so no one would see her lips moving.

"Duly noted."

"Mostly men here," she muttered, scanning the room as she tried to find a spot where she could watch and not be watched.

"No surprise there considering who makes up the political system in the city."

Chloe remained silent as she managed to grab herself a glass of champagne and make her way across the room, toward the large balconies where she could lean against the curtains that were a very similar color to her dress, "there are other girls here, but they seem to be of age. Can you see inside the party?"

"I can see that red is definitely a good color on you," he informed her.

She held her breath and looked over her shoulder, toward the window to try and see him but she could barely see the building across from them so she looked away, "should I just hang out here until I see younger girls or what?" She whispered, lifting the glass to her lips but not drinking from it.

"Yeah, just try to listen to what's going on around you. I'm doing the same."

"You're _in_ here?" She asked, her eyes widening as she scanned the crowd more closely.

"I didn't say _that_." There was the barest hint of amusement in his voice. "Maybe I just bugged the place."

"Yeah, right. The quality ones cost a fortune and you'd need about ten of them to really get a good idea of what was going on all around this place, besides, you wouldn't need me in here then, would you?" She asked, still looking around and then stilling.

"I never said I _wasn't_ in there, either."

Her stomach tightened when she saw none other than Oliver Queen a few feet away, his back was to her, but he was unmistakable. She couldn't help but wonder _why_ he was there and if he had anything to do with the dirty Mayor. "What do you know about the guest list?"

"That most of the bigwigs in the city were invited. Why?"

She shifted a little, her eyes still on Oliver, "nothing, just trying to make sense of the crowd," she lied, her heart beating faster as she wondered if she should approach him or not.

"My guess is most of them have chipped in for the girl," he informed her.

Chloe leaned back against the wall once more, feeling sick all of the sudden as she looked down. Not so perfect after all. Pretty far from it if he was encouraging child prostitution. That didn't sound like him at all, but he was standing _right there_ and although she couldn't see his face, she knew he had to be there on his own free will.

On top of that, he told her he wanted to meet her on Sunday. Not Friday. Not Saturday. _Sunday_ , because he knew he would be busy with the party and possibly the preparations for it.

"Are you still with me, Gorgeous?"

Chloe took a deep breath and nodded slightly, "yeah," she answered, turning her head to look toward Oliver once more. Now she just wanted to get this over with and get the hell out of that place.

"Going radio silent for the time being. If you need me, just say the safe word at any time and I'll be there."

"Okay," she agreed, looking down at the champagne in her hand and wishing she could drink it without being afraid of getting drugged from it.

At that moment, Oliver turned, glancing around, his gaze falling on her.

She paused when she felt eyes on her and lifted her head, looking at him instinctively and freezing when she saw him looking at her.

It took him a moment to realize his oversight in the whole plan. But the way she was looking at him, a mixture of confusion and _disgust_ was what he saw. Of course now she thought that _he_ was some kind of lowlife that supported one of the most twisted kinds of child abuse.

Christ.

He offered her a small, tentative smile and slowly headed toward her. It wasn't like he could just pretend they hadn't seen each other, even if she now had the completely wrong impression.

Her eyes widened when she saw him moving toward her and she shook her head then quickly looked away, hoping it would be enough of a hint for him. She didn't want to draw attention to herself and talking to the local billionaire was most definitely the way to do just that. On top of that, she didn't want Green Arrow to know she associated herself with Oliver because she didn't want him to think she was playing him somehow.

When she shook her head and looked away, his chest tightened, but he definitely got the message loud and clear: do not pass go. Do not collect one hundred dollars.

_Shit._

* * *

The party had gotten progressively worse the more people got drunk. She had managed to keep to herself all night so far and she had managed to avoid Oliver completely as well. She was glad he had taken the hint and was keeping his distance and even though she was fairly sure she wasn't going to manage avoiding him and his bullshit excuses tomorrow too, at least she could buy herself a few more hours and focus on the _real_ reason why she was there.

She had gone to the bathroom to, mostly take a break from her heels and by the time she got out, she was shocked to see even more people there. A lot more women for sure.

Apparently the 'real' party was finally starting. Swallowing hard, she straightened herself and looked around, catching a glimpse of Oliver. At least he seemed to be alone still, unlike a lot of men who were apparently ready to devour the girls they had their hands and mouths all over.

"Are you still there?" She asked, her stomach turning at the sight around the room.

Oliver's skin was starting to crawl at the sight of the men with their hands on _little girls_. Girls who couldn't have been more than fourteen or fifteen, tops. His jaw was tense, but he had to play it cool if he wanted to make sure they were going to take down the mayor with the rest of them. Chloe's voice on the comm. startled him a little and he ducked his head, pressing his hand to his right ear. "I'm here," he uttered.

The second he spoke, her eyes narrowed. She had still been looking at Oliver and although she couldn't really see his mouth, she had definitely seen him lift his hand to his ear, the right one, where she knew Green Arrow usually wore his communicator too.

But there was absolutely no way. No way Oliver was... although it would certainly explain him being there.

Her heart was racing all of the sudden and she felt like her head was spinning. It couldn't be...

She had to be sure, so she went on after a deep breath, her eyes firmly on him, "it's getting ugly." She was surprised she could even think at this point, even as she tried to make sense of what was going on.

Or what she thought was going on anyway.

"I see it. I just need to make sure we get proof about the not-so-great mayor," he told her, his eyes darting around.

Her heart skipped a beat then sped up. His head was still low but she was almost sure she had seen his mouth moving, her eyes widened but before she had time to say anything else, she felt an arm around her waist and a hot mouth against her neck and shuddered instantly.

She felt sick but she turned around as quickly as she could, hoping to put some space between herself and whoever this was, her stomach turning when she saw a guy old enough to be her dad staring down at her.

He sneered at her, his eyes going to her cleavage. "The mayor's getting bored," he told her. "You'll make a great appetizer."

She took a deep breath and stared up at him, forcing herself to smile as well as she could, "it'd be an honor," she said, her stomach turning even more as she forced herself not to look over her shoulder to check if Oliver was reacting to this at all.

If she'd looked, she'd have seen him tense the second he realized what was going on, his jaw tightening even more, hands curling into fists at his sides.

"Good. And then maybe you and I can have some fun when he's done," he told her, sliding his arm around her waist and leading her down the hall.

Even though she tried to say something to him, to keep up with appearances, she couldn't bring herself to. All she wanted to say was she hoped he had a heart attack and died before he could touch any of those poor girls. So she kept her mouth shut for a long moment as they neared what she could only guess was the master bedroom.

"Is the mayor here already?" She asked, knowing that that was important information to share with the Green Arrow, whoever the hell he was.

"He is. He's in a private room back here. He's not keen on sharing his time with the rest of us." He kissed the side of her neck, then knocked on the door. "Mr. Mayor, your first gift has arrived."

The mayor, even older than the man at Chloe's side, opened the door, a robe wrapped around him even though the top part was draped open, revealing his bare chest beneath. He looked Chloe up and down for a moment, then nodded. "I'll let you know when I'm ready for the next one," he said, reaching out and wrapping his hand around one of her arms, pulling her inside the room.

Chloe shuddered in disgust and couldn't stop herself from wiping her neck clean as she was forced inside the room. She wished now she had discussed with Arrow how far she had to let this go on for before he had enough evidence.

"And who is the next one?" Chloe asked, looking up at the Mayor and arching her eyebrows. Getting him to talk should buy her some time.

"Whoever they bring me," he told her with a smile, shrugging. "You're a little older than I generally go for, but you're pretty enough." He licked his lips, shedding the robe and revealing white boxer shorts with red polka dots. Other than that, he only wore socks. "Why don't you get out of that dress?"

Her stomach turned even more. She didn't understand how anyone could ever put themselves through this. But she guessed that those words were enough of a confession. But she was going to try for more.

She reached behind herself, taking her time to pretend she was unzipping her dress, "how young do you usually go for, Mayor?" She asked, smirking at him.

"The younger the better," he said, staring at her breasts.

Her stomach turned but she opened her dress slightly, letting some more cleavage show to distract him, "even little kids?" She asked, keeping her voice light and forcing a smile on her lips, "because I don't know if I can compete with that."

"Of course not _kids_. But around thirteen is great. They're so... _new_."

Perfect. Chloe pulled her dress back up and looked at the Mayor, smiling a little at him, "why don't you help me with this?" She asked, turning her back to him and pointing at her zipper as she muttered "Arrow." Hoping it was loud enough for him to hear.

"Of course." He moved closer to her, one hand resting on her hip and squeezing a little as he began to ease the zipper down.

At that moment, the door flew open, banging back against the wall loudly, and one pissed off Oliver Queen stood there, glaring daggers at the mayor.

Chloe almost sighed in relief as she pulled away from the Mayor, her eyes widening when she saw _Oliver_ there instead of the Green Arrow.

The Mayor stared at Oliver too then chuckled, "I think someone forgot to tell you this is my private room, Queen. I'm sure they can arrange another one for you."

His smile was cold. "I'm sure they can, too. But I actually need to have a quick word with your playmate," he said, his gaze shifting to Chloe momentarily.

Chloe zipped her dress back up and stared at Oliver, her heart racing. She hoped his plan went beyond this, whatever it was.

"I'm afraid this one is taken, Queen."

"I think you'll like the girl heading this way a little more," he told the other man, raising his eyebrows. "She's a bit younger."

The Mayor considered for a moment then waved his hand, dismissing the girl, "I don't want to wait long."

She nodded a little and glanced at Oliver then started out of the room.

He followed her, turning at the door and pausing. "Happy birthday, Mr. Mayor. I really hope it's a _memorable_ one."

"Hurry up," the Mayor called, returning to his bed.

He smirked, shutting the door behind him and then grew serious once more as he faced Chloe in the hallway.

Chloe took a deep breath and stared up at him then reached inside her purse and grabbed her phone, "we need to call the cops and get out of here."

"One step ahead of you," he informed her, resting a hand at the small of her back. "Let's go."

Her jaw clenched and she continued down the hall, lowering her head and hoping no one would notice she had left the Mayor's room so quickly.

He didn't look at anyone either, simply guided her down the hall, through the crowd, and out the door without another word, every muscle in his body tense.

Once the elevator doors closed and they were alone, she looked up at him again, her expression unreadable.

Oliver wasn't sure what to make of her expression, so he simply gazed back at her, falling silent.

Chloe just let out her breath and looked away, the way she saw it, that was more than enough proof that he was Green Arrow, but it wasn't anything concrete. And it wasn't like they could talk in there anywhere, where there might be cameras or bugs.

When the elevator stopped, he made his way out of the elevator, turning to look at her and hesitantly holding his hand out toward her.

She didn't take it, just kept on walking toward the exit of the building as she wrapped her arms around herself. How could she have been so incredibly stupid and have completely missed this?

Oliver swallowed hard as she walked away from him wordlessly. He forced himself to take a deep breath and then followed her slowly, until they were out of the building. "I can explain. It isn't what you think," he whispered.

She was pretty sure it was _exactly_ what she thought, but she still didn't say anything, not until they were close to the corner where she had parked her car. She wanted to be out of the way when the cops showed up, or better yet, she wanted him to be out of the way.

With her arms still crossed over her chest, she turned to face him again, her back to the car, "are you going to tell me the truth or just feed me some more of your bullshit?"

"I know me being there looks bad, and please believe me when I say that's not the kind of people I have any desire to be associated with," he began.

"More bullshit then," she said sharply, "I'm going home." She told him, reaching for her purse and pulling her keys out as she turned toward her car. 

"Chloe, _wait_ ," he pleaded, reaching out and putting his hand over her door so she couldn't open it. "I'm not that kind of guy."

"And what kind of guy are you, Oliver?" She asked, her stomach tightening as she turned to face him again.

"Not the kind that endorses what was going on in there," he said honestly.

"That doesn't answer my question," she told him, arching her eyebrows, "or I guess I should ask what kind of guy am I _supposed_ to believe you are now?" She demanded, her eyes narrowing. 

He paused at that, gazing at her for a long moment. "Now?" he echoed.

Chloe arched her eyebrows and stared up at him, "yes. Now. Or are you not done playing your little game?" Her heart was racing and her chest was ridiculously tight, but she didn't want to accuse him of being the Green Arrow and making a complete idiot out of her without a confession or more concrete evidence. 

His stomach knotted at the expression on her face, at the anger in her tone. "I'm the same guy that you've been hanging out with for the past several weeks," he said quietly. "It wasn't an act."

She stared up at him for a long moment, her eyes glassy mostly out of anger and just the... betrayal she felt. She didn't even know where to begin to respond to that so she lifted both hands to his arms and pushed him away both from her and from her car, "just get out of my way." 

He flinched involuntarily when her hand connected with the wound in his arm that she herself had stitched up. "Chloe, I need you to listen to me."

Chloe stilled when he flinched and looked down at his arm, her hand still on it, she could definitely feel the bandage there, much thicker than his other arm felt. That was proof enough for her. She pulled her hands back and stared up at him. 

He held his breath as she suddenly stared at him, her eyes a little wider than before. "Please don't freak out. I can explain everything," he whispered. "Just give me an hour and I'll be at your apartment with answers."

She stared at him for a moment longer then turned her back to him, unlocking her car and getting in without a word. 

Oliver swallowed hard, not trying to stop her, his stomach tight as he watched her drive away.


	10. Chapter 10

Oliver's heart was pounding in his chest.

Chloe knew he was Green Arrow. Which he supposed was a much better alternative than her thinking he was some child molester. Or someone who even spent _time_ with child molesters. 

It just wasn't how he'd intended for her to find out.

He'd spent a good forty minutes making sure that the police had found all of the evidence they'd worked at obtaining before driving quickly back to his apartment.

And now as he stood on the rooftop across the street from her building, he found himself almost as scared of how she was going to react to his presence as he'd been the night he'd gotten _shot_.

But he supposed it was time to just bite the bullet, so to speak.

He fired a grappling hook to the flagpole atop her building and slid down the wire until he had landed on her balcony. Swallowing hard, he drew in a steadying breath and reached out, knocking lightly at the glass.

Chloe had spent her time alternating between relieved that she finally knew who he was, worried because she didn't know if everything was going right at the Mayor's party and just completely beyond pissed off and feeling betrayed that he had been _playing_ her all this time.

She had kept the balcony door locked and the curtains closed on purpose since she didn't know if she was going to want to see him, but the second she heard the knock, she made a beeline for the balcony. She hadn't bothered changing, just had gotten rid of her shoes, besides it wasn't like she wanted to be in her nightgown around him anytime soon. Or ever. Ever was definitely more likely.

As she pulled the curtains back and unlocked the glass door then opened it and her eyes fell on him, she was pretty sure she had never felt an urge so strong to slap someone before. But she managed to hold back on that. She did however eye his uniform for a moment then arched her eyebrows, "you shouldn't have bothered, I think you've put on a show for me long enough already, don't you?"

When he spoke, his voice wasn't distorted as it usually was when he met her as Green Arrow, or like when he'd been using the comm device earlier that evening. "It's not a show."

"And what would you call it, _Oliver_?" She asked then smirked humorlessly, "I guess at least now I know your name."

His expression remained neutral as he leaned back against the railing. "I was going to tell you," he said honestly.

"When exactly were you planning on telling me?" She arched her eyebrows, "I'm sure you were having fun, coming in here like this and pretending you were interested in me only to have me kick you out and then call me to what, try to see if you could get my attention that way?" She demanded, her voice getting tighter as she spoke, still standing by the door.

Oliver blinked, taken back by her accusation. "Is that what you _really_ think?" he asked dubiously, shaking his head and taking a step toward her.

"That's exactly what I think," she said sharply but didn't move, "why the hell else would you hit on me one night and kiss me then call me the next day as someone _else_ and ask me out on a date?" She dared, "I don't know what kind of enjoyment you got out of confusing the hell out of me, but I'm glad one of us was having fun!" She spoke without a pause, her face felt hot and her stomach was in knots, the more she thought about all the confusion he put her thought, _knowing_ what he was doing, the angrier she got.

He took another step toward her, his heart beating heavily against his chest. "I wasn't trying to confuse you," he stated firmly. "That's _why_ I was planning to tell you the truth, because once I finally realized that _Green Arrow_ was the guy you were interested in, it dawned on me there wasn't another guy involved at all!"

Chloe's eyes widened as she stared at him in disbelief, "why would you _ever_ think there was another guy!?" She asked, shaking her head, "I told you that _the day after you kissed me_ ," she said angrily, "why would I kiss someone like that if I was _already_ seeing someone else? Is that your impression of _me_!?"

"No! I don't know!" He threw his hands in the air, shaking his head. "Because I caught you off guard? Because you were scared I was going to die? I wasn't exactly thinking _clearly_! I'd been shot!"

"I remember that, you dropped off here after being gone for how long and asked me to _patch you up_ and then you vanished! _Again_!" She told him, "and to think I was glad I didn't stay home waiting for you instead of going out with the _other_ you because I thought he was a genuinely nice guy, but you were just playing me _all along_!"

"That is _not_ how it was!" he said angrily, brushing the hood back and off his head and then yanking his night vision goggles off, as well, tossing them onto the small table. "And I vanished again because I was afraid of what I might do if I showed up here again as Green Arrow!"

"And what the hell would that be!?" She demanded, standing up straight and daring him.

He closed the distance between them and hauled her up against him, his mouth descending on hers hungrily as one hand tangled in her hair. There was nothing gentle about the kiss, just simple urgency and need coupled with frustration.

Her eyes widened when he moved closer, her heart skipping a beat then racing even faster than it had before, the thought of pushing him away and slapping him crossed her mind briefly and then his lips were on hers and she was returning the kiss with just as much hunger and intensity. She had been wanting to feel everything that came with kissing him again since that first night.

As soon as it dawned on him that she was kissing him back, he slid his tongue lightly across her mouth, seeking entrance, his arm tightening around her possessively as he backed her up against the sliding glass doors, the hand in her hair keeping her head from banging into the door.

Chloe gasped against his mouth and parted her lips under his, she wrapped her arms around his neck for support and tiptoed, her feet barely touching the ground anymore as she was pressed between him and the glass.

The tiny part of his brain that was still functioning, was cognizant of the fact that if they leaned too hard on the door, they would shatter it, and considering he had no desire to either hurt her or himself, he pulled her away from it, backing her into the apartment instead, his tongue exploring her mouth and then dancing with hers.

Just like the first time, she couldn't think straight other than the fact that she wanted _more_. His lips already felt absolutely amazing against her, and on top of everything else that was happening and the adrenaline that had come with all the events of the night and then from her anger, she wanted some release and _this_ felt like the perfect way to find it.

Even as he walked her back into her apartment, something she was barely aware of, she reached for the zipper on his vest and tugged it down hard. She didn't care if she broke it, she just wanted it off him.

He backed her toward the nearest surface--the wall, knowing her couch was somewhere close by but not really caring where at that point. He reached down, taking hold of one of her thighs and pulling it up toward his waist, grunting as his lips left hers and began trailing down her neck, his tongue darting out to taste her skin. The hand still on her thigh slid slowly beneath her dress, gliding upwards.

She shivered and kept her eyes closed as she locked her leg around his waist, her head falling back against the wall as she took a deep breath before lifting her head as well as she could with lips on her neck and slid her hands inside his vest, her hands touching his bare chest as she pushed the leather out of the way.

He let go of her just long enough to shrug the vest off his shoulders, then his lips descended on hers once more, his hand finding its way beneath her dress again, higher than before, his fingers brushing against her panties. He shuddered at the feel of her hands against his bare skin, nipping lightly at her lower lip.

Chloe moaned against his lips instantly at his touch, her eyes closing once more as the heel of her foot dug against the back of his pants. She lowered a hand to his elbow and pulled his arm closer, encouraging the contact as she wrapped her other arm around his now bare back, his skin was incredibly hot and moist from being under the thick material of his vest, her palm was sliding over it even as she tried to pull him closer.

He hissed involuntarily as pain flickered up his arm, but he didn't want to stop, and clearly she didn't want him to. He pushed the edge of her underwear aside and slid his fingers over her teasingly, his other arm tightening around her a little more, enjoying the sensation of her fingers over his back. He pulled his mouth away from hers in order to breathe and because he wanted to see her face as he sank a finger inside her tight heat.

A louder moan escaped her this time, the feeling of his fingers touching her causing her legs to weaken but she locked her knee down and moved against his touch, her head falling back once more but when she felt his eyes on her, she lifted it again and opened her eyes. They were darker than usual and wide and she was glad the lights in her apartment were on this time because she would have hated to have missed that look on _his_ face.

With a deep breath, she held his gaze and lowered her hand from his back to his lower back then brought it over to his stomach before pushing it further down, her fingertips dipping inside his leather pants, even if they were too tight for her to have access to what she was really looking for.

His own eyes were dark, his pupils dilated and he inhaled sharply when her fingers brushed beneath the waistband of his pants. "Unzip your dress," he whispered, his thumb sliding over her clit.

Chloe gasped and shuddered, taking a deep breath and staring up at him. She pulled her hand away from his pants but instead of reaching for her dress, she cupped him through the leather, rubbing her palm firmly down over the bulge and staring up at him, "unzip your pants." She said, surprised by how thick her own voice sounded.

A faint smile tugged his mouth upwards at her response and he leaned in, pressing a kiss to her collarbone as he thrust another finger inside her. "You are so gorgeous," he murmured against her skin, trailing kisses up her neck.

She took a deep breath and shifted the leg that was around him, pulling him even close toward her as she shuddered again then turned her head, pressing her lips to his neck in return except instead of kissing, she nibbled at his skin. She could feel his pulse point under her lips, she could tell how fast his heart was beating too. Smiling a little, she ran her tongue over the spot slowly.

Oliver shuddered, doing his best to ignore the effect she was having on _him_. His tongue darted out, licking lightly at her earlobe as he began to thrust his fingers slowly in and out of her, his thumb brushing over her clit each time, feeling the way she tightened around him.

Even as her body responded to him and her hips thrust against his hand, she moved her arms around him, finally letting go of his own and pressed her palms against his back, her nails running over his skin as she tried to pull him closer even more. Her mouth was still on his neck but she wasn't paying attention to what she was doing to it. She ran her tongue against his skin, moaning and shivering as her back arched and she cried out unexpectedly as her orgasm hit her.

He lifted his head to watch as she came undone in his arms, his eyes growing even darker. His breathing was shallow and unsteady as he stared at her intently.

Her head fell back against the wall and she opened her eyes, looking up at him and taking a deep breath. Without hesitation, she lifted a hand to his neck and pulled him closer before slamming her lips against his. Even though her body was still calming down, she wanted more and once again, stopping was the farthest thing from her mind.

Wordlessly, he lifted her up, into his arms, wincing a little at the light strain on his injured arm as he carried her away from the wall. "Bedroom," he whispered against her mouth.

She took a deep breath and opened her eyes, locking both of her legs around him as he picked her up, her fingers sliding up into his hair. "Down the hall," she told him, running her teeth over his bottom lip, "straight ahead."

Oliver nodded slightly, carrying her down the hallway and into her bedroom, flipping on the light and kicking the door shut behind them. He laid her down on the bed, covering her body with his immediately, the length of him stretched over her and it dawned on him that he was much closer to being naked than she was. He licked lightly at her lips before rolling them so she lay atop him, his hand sliding up her back and tugging the zipper on her dress down.

Everything happened faster than she could keep up with it, her head still spinning and next thing she knew, she was straddling his hips and shrugging off her dress. She felt like she was drunk even though she hadn't had a single sip of alcohol all night. It was all him. She stared down at Oliver for a long moment then took a deep breath and sat up then reached for her dress, pulling it up over her head and off before looking at him again.

He drew in a deep breath, staring at her, his heart pounding heavily against his chest as he took in the sight of her flesh-colored, strapless bra and black satin panties. "Wow," he whispered.

She looked down at him, her cheeks and chest feeling warm all of the sudden. Her underwear didn't match but she hadn't expected _anyone_ to see it. Especially not anyone that mattered. And _he_ obviously mattered. She leaned down and kissed him once more, urgently like before but less of that breathless need this time. She still wanted him desperately, but now she felt like she had him already. For this anyway.

He reached up, cupping her cheeks in his hands and kissing her back, a little softer this time. "So beautiful," he murmured against her lips.

Chloe opened her eyes and looked at him as she pulled back a little to look at him, holding her breath then reaching her hands down his sides, running her nails against his skin as she held his gaze.

He drew in a shuddering breath as he gazed up at her, licking his lips as he watched her. "You're too far away," he whispered, reaching out and massaging her thighs, raising his eyebrows a little.

"You're overdressed," she told him, arching her eyebrows and lowering her hand down his stomach, looking down as her fingers touched the skin just above his pants before looking back up at him.

"I suppose I am," he agreed, reaching down and undoing his utility belt.

She shifted and pulled on the belt, taking it away from him once he was done and tossing it to the floor before looking down at his pants once more, trying to find the zipper on it.

A smile tugged at his mouth and he sat up a little, guiding her hand to the hidden zipper over the codpiece.

Chloe cocked her head and slid her hand under the codpiece, looking at him as she tugged the zipper down slowly and smirking as she kept her eyes on him. Once she was done, she reached for his pants and pulled them down.

When he was down to a pair of black, silk boxer shorts, he reached for her once more, hands settling at her hips as he tugged her closer to him.

She shifted closer once more, straddling him again and looking down at him, her eyes locking on his as she lowered her hips over his and rubbed herself slowly over his bulge, shivering.

He tensed beneath her, his hands tightening against her. "Christ," he whispered, flipping them without warning so she was under him once more. He reached up, undoing the front clasp of her bra and letting the material fall to the sides.

Inhaling sharply, she stared up at him and dropped her arms to her bed, smirking as she stared up at him then bending her knees up to either side of him, watching him.

Oliver shifted slightly, meeting her eyes for a moment before dipping his head and capturing one of the rosy peaks in his mouth. Chloe moaned, lifting her hands to his back once more and sliding her fingers through his hair, pulling his mouth closer.

He smiled against her skin, laving the sensitive bud with his tongue, and then scraping his teeth over it lightly as his hand reached out to attend to the other, his thumb rubbing over it lightly.

She arched her back and ran her hands down his back, sliding her fingers into his boxers and tugging on it as she pulled it down as much as she could.

"Slow down, Gorgeous. Don't want to skip over anything important," he told her with amusement, lifting his head to look at her once more and then wrapped his lips around her other nipple to pay it the same attention he'd shown the first.

"Important?" She echoed, cocking her head to look down at him even as she shivered. Slowing down was not part of her plans.

He released her nipple with a light popping sound and smiled up at her. "Mmhmm. There's an art to this," he informed her, placing kisses down her stomach.

Chloe held her breath and stared down at him, her cheeks growing warm once more as he had obviously realized she had very little experience. "And I suppose you're the expert they say you are?"

He paused at that, looking up at her. "With all the talking they do about me, at least a little of it's bound to be true, isn't it?" He raised his eyebrows, pressing a kiss to her abdomen and swirling his tongue around her belly button.

She shuddered, her feet pressing down against the mattress as she watched him, "maybe less talking and more _doing_ is key."

Oliver smirked against her skin, scooting farther down the bed and sliding her underwear off her hips, discarding them somewhere over his shoulder. He rested his hands on the inside of her thighs, pushing them apart a little more and settling between them. He pressed a kiss to each of them, glancing up at her silently.

Chloe inhaled sharply, her eyes darkening even more as her pupils dilated. She lifted her head and stared down at him, dropping her hands to the sheets and wrapping her fingers around it. She had wondered what sex with Oliver would have been like, but she had fantasized about sex with Green Arrow constantly since that night in her bathroom and by what she knew now, her imagination was no where nearly as good as he was.

He lowered his head, gently parting her folds with his fingers and laving his tongue along the length of her slit, tasting her and groaning softly, already needing more.

She gasped, her eyes slamming shut as her back arched, her head pressed against the bed as her hands twisted around the sheets. His hot mouth against her, in addition to the vibrations his groan sent through her entire body were almost enough to send her over the edge again.

He grinned at the sound of her gasp, repeating his actions and then lapping his tongue against her clit. "Like that?" he murmured, knowing the vibrations were adding to the sensation. "Sometimes talking isn't so bad." He licked his lips before wrapping them around the sensitive button and suckling gently.

Chloe cried out, her throat burning as she did. She had never imagined it would feel like this, her entire body felt on edge and all it took was one more touch from his lips and tongue for her to come undone again, feeling nearly overwhelmed by the sensations he was causing.

Oliver looked up as her third orgasm of the night hit, gently easing two fingers inside of her, feeling her inner walls fluttering around him as he stroked her gently, helping her ride out the sensations. "Gorgeous," he whispered again.

She was breathing heavily as she opened her eyes again, her hips jerking against his hand as she stared up at him, cheeks bright red, eyes open wide as she pushed herself up on her elbows.

He kissed her inner thighs softly once more before sliding his gaze up to meet hers.

With another deep breath, she looked back at him, dropping her legs to the bed and stretching a little before sliding her hand between them and brushing her fingers against him through the thin material of his boxers.

He inhaled sharply, sliding his body up and over hers fully once more. "If you keep that up, this isn't going to last very long," he murmured, dropping his mouth to kiss her neck.

"Guess we better get started then," she told him, pulling her hand back and pushing his boxers down and finally out of the way.

Oliver exhaled slowly, kissing his way up to her mouth and capturing her lips with his briefly before lifting his head to gaze down at her. "Are you on the pill?"

With a deep breath, she nodded, staring up at him for a moment as she lifted her hands to his back, her heart beating faster once again in anticipation.

"I'm clean," he murmured, holding her gaze as he shifted a little. "Just for your peace of mind." He pressed a kiss to her cheek, reaching down to guide himself to her entrance.

Chloe blinked a couple of times, her brain was having a hard time comprehending words after what he had just done to her with so little effort, but she finally understood them and nodded a little, turning to look up at him as she felt the pressure of him pressing against her, holding her breath as she felt him sliding inside of her slowly then letting it out with a soft gasp. It hadn't been that long, but he was definitely bigger than she was used to.

His gaze darted to her face as he stilled. "Are you all right?" The worry in his voice and his eyes was very real.

"Yes," she breathed, relaxing a little and nodding up at him, bending her knees up higher and groaning quietly as her body made more room for him.

Keeping his eyes on her, he slid inside of her slowly, brushing his nose lightly over hers and then pulling back to watch her once more as he thrust the rest of the way into her.

Chloe lifted a hand to the back of his head, cupping it and holding his gaze as she let out her breath slowly, relaxing more and nodding again.

He relaxed a little, as well, dipping his head and kissing the corner of her mouth before withdrawing from her and thrusting back in quickly.

She moaned at the feeling the friction caused, shuddering instantly as she turned her mouth and kissed him deeply, her fingers sliding into his hair.

Oliver returned the kiss without hesitation, wanting to make sure her needs were fulfilled before his as he slid his hand between them, stroking her gently as he thrust into her again, sweat rolling down his back as their bodies moved together.

Chloe shifted her legs up higher, taking a deep breath and locking her feet behind his back once more then moaning loudly both at his touch and the feel of him deeper inside her. Her fantasies really hadn't been anywhere _near_ what this felt like. Despite the initial discomfort, her body was so relaxed, all she could focus on was how amazing he felt inside her. And she wasn't allowing herself to think about how much she was actually supposed to hate him right now, because every single touch, every inch of his body felt like nothing else ever had.

After a couple of moments, he slid his arms beneath her and shifted so they were sitting up, her on his lap as he guided her movements with his hands on her hips even as he continued to thrust up and into her, dipping his head and licking a drop of perspiration off her neck.

She shivered, turning her head and brushing her lips against his temple and moving together with him, shifting closer and moaning loudly as he hit a spot inside of her at the new position, her muscles clenching around him.

"Do you have any idea how long I've wanted this?" he murmured against her ear, kissing her jaw softly.

Chloe shuddered and closed her eyes, leaning against his mouth, "probably as long as I have."

"Longer," he whispered, sliding a hand up and down her spine.

She opened her eyes at that and pulled back, turning her head to look at him, her heart skipping a beat like it always did around _him_ , as himself.

He gazed at her, his expression open and honest as their eyes locked.

Her chest tightened painfully as she stared at him, she hated that she had feelings for him already and she sure as hell didn't want to deal with them right now, so the second her eyes started feeling warmer, she leaned in and kissed him once more.

Oliver kissed her back, his hand threading through her hair as he felt his impending climax. He flipped them once more, this time so she was atop him, sliding a hand between them and stroking her quickly with his fingers, determined to make sure she was satisfied before he was. "Come for me," he whispered.

Chloe gasped and moaned again, hips moving faster against his as she pressed her knees to the bed, arching her back and slamming against him harder, her muscles clinging and clenching around him as she lowered her head to his, pressing her lips to the corner of his mouth.

At the feel of her inner muscles squeezing him, his own orgasm hit and he gasped as he thrust into her once more, throwing his head back against the pillow as he spilled inside of her, shuddering. "Oh, Chloe," he whispered, shutting his eyes.

Her head fell to his shoulder as she gasped for air, feeling her muscles spasm around him still. She closed her eyes too, relaxing her legs and sliding down from her knees slowly.

Oliver gently stroked her hair as her head came to rest on his chest. "You're incredible," he whispered.

Chloe took a deep breath and adjusted herself over him but didn't open her eyes, "I'm still pissed at you." She informed him.

A faint, sleepy smile tugged at his mouth. "Do you want me to leave?" he asked quietly.

She stilled and shifted a little, opening her eyes but not moving, "if you want to..."

"I don't," he murmured, his hand still stroking her hair.

Her chest tightened a little at that and she shifted so she was laying more on the bed than on him then sighed deeply, closing her eyes once more and relaxing. She would go back to yelling at him tomorrow.


	11. Chapter 11

When Chloe woke up the next morning she was hot. A lot hotter than normal but she was also oddly comfortable. It took her just a soft movement to feel the soreness between her legs to remember what had happened and to realize that the reason why she was so hot was that Oliver's body was fully pressed against hers, his arm was around her, his legs pressed against the back of hers so close, it felt like they fit together like pieces of a puzzle.

And then she remembered what had happened _before_ they ended up in bed together and as much as she was determined to be mad at him, she was finding it pretty hard to actually achieve that. She still wanted answers and clarifications but... the previous night had been mind blowing and amazing and once more, he had seemed sincere in everything he had said, so she felt like she would have no choice but to go at least kinda easy on him.

He felt her shift beside him and grunted a little, burying his face against her neck, his arm tightening around her a little more and dragging her closer against his chest.

She shivered a little and arched her eyebrows, a little amused by the fact that he was pretty much pulling her close like she was his favorite stuffed animal. She glanced over her shoulder toward him and took a deep breath. At least him being one and the same with Green Arrow explained why she felt so attracted to both parts of him at the same time and all the pros from both sides were combined now because they were all one person.

When she shivered, his eyebrows furrowed a little and slowly opened his eyes, eyebrows furrowing a little until he realized where he was and who he was currently spooning. He relaxed once more, placing a soft kiss to the back of her neck and letting his eyes drift shut once more.

Chloe smirked a little when she felt him relax once more but since it looked like he had no plans to wake up, she reached for his arm and slowly started to lift it as she moved away from him so she could get up.

He groaned as she pulled away and he buried his face in her pillow.

She hesitated and got up from the bed stilling to turn and look toward him to make sure she hadn't woken him up.

But he remained still, a soft snore escaping him even as his arm laid over where she'd been sprawled out on the mattress just moments before.

Chloe grinned a little and pulled the covers over him a little more before looking around the floor for her underwear then walking into her closet, picking up some fresh clothes and for the first time since she moved into this apartment, thanking God that the bathroom wasn't connected to her room so she could shower. Surely he'd wake up soon enough.

***

Soon enough turned out to be nearly two hours later.

He reached for her and when he found nothing beside him, he frowned, opening his eyes slowly and propping himself up on one elbow. Everything was silent. He rubbed a hand over his face, blinking a few times and glancing at the clock on the bedside table. His eyes widened a little as he saw that it was after 10. Sunshine was streaming in through the blinds even though they were closed. He grimaced a little as his arm ached from everything they'd done the night before, and he crawled out of bed, picking up his boxers and sliding them on before venturing out of the bedroom and down the hall.

"Chloe?" His voice was uncertain.

Chloe looked up from her laptop when she heard him calling her name and arched her eyebrows, "oh, good, I didn't kill you," she teased but didn't get up from the couch. She knew from their conversation on the phone a few nights ago and considering she now knew he wasn't just the busy CEO or just the busy Superhero, but _both_ , she figured she'd let him sleep in.

A faint smile tugged at his mouth. "No, you didn't," he agreed, watching her from where he stood.

She stretched her back a little and pulled her laptop from her lap and over the small table next to the couch, "there's coffee if you want some."

He shook his head. "Pass," he said, hesitating before moving closer to her.

Although she tried, she couldn't stop her eyes from going to his bare chest for a moment and then she glanced at his arm and winced a little, "is it hurting?"

"It's all right," he assured her. "It was well worth it." He sat down beside her on the sofa.

Chloe paused at that and smirked a little, looking over at him and smiling shyly, "I guess it was okay," she teased.

"Ouch," he joked, glancing at her sideways, a smile forming on his mouth.

She glanced at him sideways and grinned a little more then crossed her legs over the couch, "doesn't change anything though, you're still a huge liar and a player."

Even though her voice was light and she was smiling a little, he grimaced, shaking his head. "Chloe, I am sorry," he said quietly. "I honestly didn't mean to confuse you or hurt you in any way."

Chloe took a deep breath at the seriousness of his voice and leaned back against the couch so she could turn her head to look at him, "you really thought I was seeing someone else?"

He looked down. "Yeah. I did." He drew in a breath, as well, glancing up at her once more. "It would have made sense."

She frowned a little at that and shook her head, "how?"

Oliver shifted so he was sitting sideways, facing her. "You're an intelligent, gorgeous woman, Chloe." He couldn't help but wonder how she didn't see it, but then he thought about her ex-boyfriend and his jaw tightened a little. If he'd wanted to smack the guy before, now he just wanted to punch his face in.

Chloe smiled a little and looked away from him then took a deep breath, "when I told you I was seeing someone," she said quietly, "I didn't... I wasn't _expecting_ anything from Green Arrow," she admitted, doing her best not to sounds like a freak who would expect someone to be her boyfriend after one kiss, "but I don't know, it felt... different and I didn't want to go on dates with you until I knew for sure what was going on."

He chewed the inside of his cheek, watching her as she spoke. "It felt different for me, too," he confessed.

She blinked and arched her eyebrows, turning to look at him once more and pursing her lips together.

"It's why when you said you were seeing someone I didn't show up again for so long. I didn't want to mess things up for you because I wasn't sure that if we kissed again..." He paused, smiling a little. "Well. That we wouldn't end up doing everything we did last night."

"Oh," she said, surprised by the admission. She had definitely not thought about it _that_ way. She had assumed he had regretted it and that he was pulling away before she had a chance to.

"But I couldn't seem to stay away from you. It's why I kept calling you and asking you to spend time with me. I couldn't stop thinking about you," he murmured, lifting a hand to her cheek.

Chloe sighed softly and leaned into his touch, looking down, "that's a better explanation."

"It's the truth," he told her, his thumb moving over her cheek. "And I really was going to tell you. Today, in fact. It's why I wanted us to get together to talk." He paused. "You just figured it out before I got to tell you."

Her chest tightened a little as she looked up at him, "what were you going to say?" She asked curiously.

"I hadn't really thought it all out, but uh...pretty much along the lines of, 'So, there's something you need to know about me. I _am_ Green Arrow.'" He smiled a little.

She wrinkled her nose a little and arched her eyebrows, smiling, "I'm not sure it would have gone over any better," she admitted, "I had already figured it out before I noticed your arm."

Oliver stared at her. "You had?"

"During the party," she admitted, nodding, "just before that asshole started to drag me to the Mayor's room," she said, it felt like a distant memory at this point, "I said something on the communicator and I saw you reaching for your ear and lowering your head. I couldn't be sure, but when you showed up in the room after I said the safe word, I was about ninety percent sure, I just didn't want to tell you, I wanted to see if you were going to be honest with me or not."

"And I failed the test," he finished, wincing.

"You didn't really have time to," she admitted, sighing softly, "but... I appreciate you wanting to tell me, even before everything happened."

"It was starting to not be a choice anymore." He tucked some hair behind her ear.

She pursed her lips together and looked at him once more, watching him closely for a moment, "at least I don't have to pick one." She smiled a little.

Oliver relaxed a little at that. "You have them both if you want them," he said quietly, his voice serious.

Chloe looked at him for a long moment then let out her breath, "is it too late for me to say we should take things slow?"

A short chuckle escaped him and he leaned in and pressed a kiss to her forehead. "I think we might just have to redefine the word slow, Chloe."

She smiled and shifted a little closer to him, "pretty sure we can figure it out between the two of us."

"Yeah?" He smiled softly and wound an arm around her shoulders.

Chloe leaned against his side and took a deep breath, nodding a little and shrugging, "I think so, don't you?"

"Yeah. I think so." He pulled her closer, winding his other arm around her as well.

She sighed softly at that and wrapped her arm around him, turning her head and looking up at him and smiling, "I'm glad my gut feeling was right for once."

"And I'm glad that your car broke down on the way to Star City," he informed her with a grin.

Chloe wrinkled her nose at him and grinned softly too, nodding, "considering I thought it was a sign that I shouldn't have left Kansas, I'm glad it did too and I never really listened to 'signs'."

Oliver smiled and then dipped his head to kiss her softly on the mouth. He'd been, right, too. He just didn't know at the time that _he_ was the lucky guy who'd caught her interest.


End file.
